Final Tale of All Time
by Datenshi No Uzumaki
Summary: Red Riding-Hood Rin is searching, and along the way, he encounters many 'princesses' that he may accidentally have saved. Soon he becomes involved in a whole lot of dramatic and crazy problems. All he wanted to do is achieve a 'simple' ambition of his own. [HaruRin] [AU, Shounen-ai]
1. A Different Kind of Red

**Once** upon a time, in a very distant land, a set number of kingdoms were established. Overlooking the land were magical creatures of good that acted as peacekeepers between the kingdoms. The people of the land lived in peace and prosperity. Whenever something upsets that peace, the land's guardians would come to alleviate it, settle it with their magic.

Over time, the balance became unstable. One lone guardian among all the others had a different view. It began to use its magic powers for selfish reasons. Then it stirred up trouble, breaking the fragile peace of the land. The lone guardian turned its back from its duties, and the land began to slowly be covered by a darkness.

It was said, that beauty and love would one day mend the balance, and banish the growing darkness of the land. Out of fear, the lone dark guardian ventured out to extinguish any sign of hopeful light, and further cause chaos throughout the land. And the darkness continued to grow.

But then, among that darkness, _a tiny bud broke through_.

* * *

**Final Tale of All Time**

**Chapter I**: _A Different Kind of Red_

**By**: Kat Lee V

* * *

"Niichan?" A small voice called out.

A pair of big bright eyes, the color of incomparable shining deep red gems, looked down and locked with eyes that were nearly identical in color and shine. A small hand reached out and brushed back a few stray strands of maroon hair. "What is it?" The other replied.

In a room, sat a large canopy bed, with pale pink drapery, a big fluffy pale yellow bed sheets and comforter, and different shades of pink pillows. There were a few large scrolls hanging open on the stone walls, with beautifully painted images of nature and flowers, depicting the four seasons. Beside the bed were slightly opened glass doors, leading to a balcony. The sky was clear and blue, and peeking over the stone marble rails were tress, fully pink with blossomed flowers.

A small girl reached out her tiny hand to the slightly bigger child, sitting on the bed beside her, on top of the fluffy pale yellow comforter. She was lying at the center of her large bed, that looked about ready to swallow her tiny body. "Niichan, what is it like, out there?" The little girl weakly questioned.

The girl's brother, raised his head, and looked out through the open glass doors. His eyes spotted a few pink petals fly up from its tree, and a pair of birds soar by. "Well, it's really big and wonderful. There are so many things to see, and there needs to be a lot of time in order to admire it all and uncover every inch of it." The child replied. It wasn't odd that the boy was wearing an intricately designed white sun dress, and a big bright red bow on his head. Though the appearance looked like that of a girl, like his little sister, everyone knew that the older sibling was a boy.

The boy threw his hands out wide. "There is a place where a big flutter of butterflies roam, showing off their vibrant colors. Then a really weird land with singing and dancing flowers, a forest of different kinds of mushrooms and talking animals. I know that there is also an enchanting forest painted in crystal white, like on a first snowfall, even though it's the middle of spring." He then made a motion, as if holding an imaginary sword, thrusting it to the side. "Then in the seas, there are pirates, mermaids and giant sea monsters that are bigger than this castle!" The girl's eyes widened and mouth gaped open with awe. "I read that there is a floating island somewhere, where the fairies all stay, watching over the eight known kingdoms of this land. And it is said that it is a place were there are infinite rainbows, and where you can never grow old!"

"I also read that there are villages were there are little happy people, even smaller than you! And that there is a counsel of witches living in a city of emeralds." The boy grinned.

"Isn't that bad?" The girl questioned.

The boy shook his head. "Don't worry, they're all good witches, or what they said adult sizes fairies with powers of good. Then in the north, there are real live snowmen. There are all sorts of wonderful things and people in this world. I hope I get to see them, and meet them all."

A big smile formed on the little girl's lips. "Where will you go this time, Niichan?"

The boy smiled widely. "Otousama would be taking me across the sea, on our grand ship. We'll be going to visit the other kingdoms on the other side. I want to see the mermaids and giant sea monster!"

The little girl sighed, and pouted. "I wish I could go with you to all your travels with Otousama." She suddenly turned over to her side, burying her head into her big rose colored pillow. Then a fit of coughs raked her tiny body.

The boy instantly started to pat her back and rubbed it in a comforting manner. "Sorry, but you know why you can't go..." He replied glumly, while trying to soothe his sister. "I wish you could come too, but you'll just have to get better." When the girl shifted to her back, the boy took her hand, reassuringly squeezing it. "I promise you, one day, when you get stronger and your sickness is gone, I'll take you out of this castle, and we'll travel the world."

Big ruby eyes widened, glittering. "You promise, Niichan? I really want to see the home of the fairies and the land of infinite rainbows!"

The red haired boy laughed wholeheartedly. "I promise! I definitely will take you there!"

* * *

There was a knock on the wooden door. Movement could be heard within the cabin. Then a gruff voice called out. "Come in, deary!"

Without hesitation, the door opened, and light flooded into the darkened cabin. Standing at the door was a slightly tall figure, with a bright red cloak, overshadowing the person's face. "Chouko-baasan?" The figure carefully called out.

"Hurry and come in, my child. There is a draft coming from outside, and you know how weak and fragile I am right now." A scratchy voice sounded from within the darkened room.

The cabin wasn't big, but it wasn't too small either. It was an open one room space, with a curtain drawn canopy bed at the far end corner. There was a kitchen at the other end of the corner. An empty fireplace sat close to the bed, with a quaint high back armchair with a stool on top of a nice plain colored rug. There was another door, standing between the bed and the kitchen. And on the side of the small kitchen was a table for two, pushed up against the wall. Though small, it was convenient for the single owner of the place.

The door slowly closed, and the red hooded figure stepped in further into the cabin. "I brought some food for you, Baasan, to help you recover." A deep voice spoke.

"Oh, just put it on the table, and come closer my dear. I'd want to see your beautiful face. I'm sure your smile will help speed up my recovery." A voice came from the canopy bed.

The red hooded person walked over to the table, and placed down the covered wicker basket. "Baasan, that cold of yours must have gotten to your throat. Your voice is really deep."

There was a rough cough. "It must have. I hope I don't scare you with it."

There was a small chuckle. "Not at all." Slowly, the red hooded person turned around, carefully straightening the apron upon the red short skirt, with frills under it. The person went up to the bed. "Baasan, wouldn't you want to draw back the curtains? It's a bit dark in here. I heard that sunlight could help in curing illnesses."

"Oh, but it seems that my eyes are bit too sensitive to the light, my dear." A glowing eye was peeking between the crack between the drawn curtains of the canopy bed. Then a big hand came out through the drawn curtains of the canopy bed, waving. "Come closer, child."

"Baasan, you must have done something different with you hands. They're quiet bigger than I remembered" The red hooded person inched closer.

"Oh, you noticed?" The said old lady chuckled gruffly. "Well, it was because I was awaiting to give you a big hug, and hold you tightly."

A tentative hand carefully gripped the edge of the curtain. "I can't wait for that big hug, Baasan." Then suddenly the curtain was quickly drawn back. In one swift movement, a thin and long sword was drawn, the sharp edge already pressed threatening at the neck. Big yellow eyes widened, then the pupils shrank. A big jaw with a full set of sharp canine teeth were bared, rumbling with a growling sound. The red hood fell back, and ruby eyes shined with excitement and no fear. Burgundy hair fell in place, brushing past the person's jaw, framing the boyish face. The owner of the red hood was revealed to be male, and was grinning widely, showing a sharp set of jagged teeth. "My, Baasan, were those big teeth going to try to eat me?"

A threatening animalistic growl was the response, but the young male teen in a red skirt and cloak did not seem phased by the beast before him. "Mister Big Bad Wolf, you haven't been a good boy lately, especially impersonating as a grandmother to harass a poor innocent girl, just to have a snack, even though you have plenty of food to hunt for in the forest." The teen sighed, and rolled his shoulders. "You've broken the rules, as a protector of these forests. You'll need to be punished, you know."

"And who made you police of the forest?" The wolf growled. The big canine was on all fours, on top of the bed. It's size was massive, nearly as long as the bed itself. Its height came to the same height as the young male. "I did nothing wrong. The old hag that lived in this cabin has been long gone."

The male teen raised a brow, and pressed his rapier a big more against the werewolf's neck. "Really? And do you happen to know what happened to that poor old lady? From what I heard by the nearby village, the old lady was alive and kicking about four days ago."

"I did nothing!" The beast barked.

The red head narrowed his eyes. "And I think you're bluffing." With a swift move, the teen grabbed the wolf by the scruff of its neck, and directed the point of his rapier just mere centimeters directly at the big yellow eye. He glared hard at the wolf. "Now, so help me, or are you willing to lose an eye, or maybe your paws over this whole ordeal?"

* * *

With the last coin falling into the pouch, the tall young man pulled the strings and slipped the money purse into a hidden pocket of the skirt he wore. "Thank you once again, for helping us, Miss."

The red head reached a hand behind his head, rubbing it, as a blush formed upon his cheeks. "Er, it's no problem. But just call me Rin." He said to the old man.

"Well, Rin, you were able to stop the wolf of the forest from harassing us, ever again. You were able to avoid any of our children from getting eaten by such beast. We're so grateful!" The old man replied. He was the village elder, and like the leader. The red head, Rin, looked up to see the happy and hopeful expressions from the other people residing in the village.

"It's a bit odd and concerning, though." Rin furrowed his brows, and crossed his arms over his chest. "Through my travels in these forests and visits with neighboring villages, I've heard about the big wolf that can talk like a human. It was said that in these lands it was one of the guardians, what happened? Why would the guardian resort to eating the people of the villages just recently? It never happened before, right?"

The man bowed his head, and then a man in his mid forties stepped forward, beside the village elder. "I believe it all started about two weeks ago." The man spoke. Rin blinked, and raised a brow. "The Queen came by two weeks ago, demanding taxes. But since the Queen took the throne, the tax rates have been rising every time. It was just that this time, our village, and most likely the same with our neighbors, wasn't able to pay those high taxes. So the Queen threatened us..."

Rin frowned. Then a women stepped forward. "She told us that if we can't pay up for the protection and happy lives we've been living here upon _her_ lands, then we no longer deserve it. Then she said that we're all just food for the dogs, and that our village was just not worth it anymore..." There were some women that sniffed, and something in the red haired teen's chest tightened when he heard the story.

"So that was about the time when your problems started, am I correct?" He gritted his teeth, clenching his fists. The adults of the village all nodded. Rin shakily exhaled, recalling all the stories he was told, when he came through the villages of the forests. It was the same for each village. Their live stocks were all killed or taken. The fields were destroyed, with large animal tracks left as evidence. Their homes were haunted by the loud howls and deep claw indentations upon the walls of their home. Then soon, people got attacked by a monster in the night, a wolf they all acclaimed. A few villages were not so lucky, as some of the adult men were slain by the beast, before it moved on. In the current village, the one close to the edge of the forest territory, the same things that happened to the other villages recently occurred. And they remembered a dear old woman who was more comfortable living alone, just a few feet away from the village, deeper in the forest. Everyone was too scared to go and save her, fearful of the prowling beast ready to attack.

Ruby eyes slowly opened. "Tell me, where did the Queen head off to, back to her castle?" Rin carefully asked.

The village elder shook his head. "No, the opposite direction, actually." He pointed to a direction to the North-West. "It's curious, as there are no other villages or towns of this kingdom that lies at that direction. All there is, is the neighboring kingdom, known as the natural habitat of various butterflies."

"However, no one has ever heard of anything from that kingdom either. It's been years since anyone from that direction has passed by through here in order to visit the late King's castle." Another man spoke out.

"I bet it was because of that damned Queen. Since the King remarried with her, things have changed drastically." A woman muttered scornfully.

The woman beside her had a sorrowful expression, huddling next to the other woman. "If only the princess-"

A woman came between the two, interrupting the other mid-sentence and hushing them. "Kaede-san, Chiyo-san, you shouldn't say things like that about the Queen. You know she has dark powers, and has ears everywhere." She whispered harshly.

Ruby eyes tore away from the villagers, and looked back at the short old man. "Well, I must make my leave then." He pulled his red hood over his head, with the shadow of the cloth barely hiding his deep shining eyes.

"You're going already?" The old man questioned, his mood falling. "You're not going after the Queen, are you?" He became concerned and fearful for the young man.

Rin scowled a bit, turning his head towards the direction of the neighboring kingdom. "I have to." He clenched his fists tightly. When he turned his head back to the old man and the villagers, he smiled. "Thank you for allowing me to rest here."

"No, thank you for saving our village from that wolf." The village elder insisted. The other villagers added their words of gratefulness to the young man.

The red head's expression slightly fell. "It's no problem, but I'm sorry about Chouko-baasan."

The old man shook his head. "It's okay. It's just we were not able to get to her on time. It's not your fault." The old man pat the boy's back in reassurance.

After receiving a satchel of food, and being warmly sent off by the villagers, Rin walked on the path towards the direction the nice people pointed out to him, where the Queen headed. After a fair distance from the village, the mood around the red hooded boy changed, and there was a tension in the air. A hand shot up to grip the area over his heart. '_Four more days..._' His mind hissed.

Rin raised his head, and looked through the leaves of the trees, towards the blueness of the sky. '_I need to get as far away from the village as soon as possible._' He lowered his head, and stared straight ahead, where the dirt path continued on. '_What the hell kind of trouble are you brew now, you old hag?_' He scowled, glaring ahead of him. '_Whatever it is, I'll end you, and make you pay for what you've done._' With a new sense of determination fueled by anger and hate, Rin marched on along the path.

End Chapter I

* * *

**AN:** A new story, and my first time writing about the fandom of Free!. Sorry, but I don't think I'll be doing anymore Naruto Fandom.

It's a bit short, but it's just the start of a multi-chapter story. If you knew already about my writing, then you'd recognize that it's a fantasy, drama, action type of story. And it all started with my urge to draw Rin, my most fave character in Free!, in a dress. It then ended with Rin dressed as Red Ridding Hood. Then it all went down hill from there.

There will be some romance, and my failed attempts at some humor. This won't be your ordinary story filled with recognizable fairy tales we all mostly grew up with. It will have some deeper and maybe darker tones and themes, with lots of twists. All of the stories would be connected somehow. The little story at the very top? It's a little original tale I made, as an introduction of this story. You'll eventually get to find out the true meaning behind it in later chapters. And also, there will be hints of romance. However, I'm torn between by two main ships I'm obsessed about: HaruRin or MakoRin. I think I'll lean more on HaruRin. But it will depend as I continue writing. I may leave it up to you readers on what to decide.

Almost everyone are 'princesses'. That's right, 'princesses'. Rin is a 'princess' too. Why 'princesses'? Because I want it that way. There will one day be a chapter discussing why they have such title, don't worry. Plus, it was for some kind of comedic purpose, and my own personal satisfaction of boys in skirts or dresses. You can check out the art I already have of the characters, if you want. It's found in my Tumblr page on my profile.

So, interested? Want it continued? I'm testing the waters here in a new fandom. I don't mind some kind of word of encouragement. And you'll just have to wait for the next chapter, when I'm in the mood... I think I need to lay down now.

-Kat Lee V (aka Datenshi no Uzumaki)


	2. Lone Beauty Asleep

**Once** upon a time, in a kingdom not so far away, there was a princess, who was known to be one of the most beautiful, all across the lands. Like a butterfly coming out of its cocoon, so did this princess by a certain age. All the people from all over sought out to see such beauty residing in a majestic land, and were not disappointed.

The news of such radiating beauty reached the ears of a certain woman, who was consumed with jealousy. This woman had powers, and used it to place a curse on the beloved princess. It was told that on the sixteenth birthday, the finger of the princess would be pricked on a spindle, and then will die. Fortunately, a fairy was able to alter the curse, so that the princess would fall into an eternal sleep, instead of dying. The only way that the princess would be awakened, was by a kiss from a King's son.

Immediately, the King declared a law, destroying all spindles or any spinning-wheels, and banning the spinning of those spinning-wheels. However, one day, after the sixteenth birthday was celebrated, exploring hidden places within the palace, the princess found a lone spinning-wheel, all up in a tower. Curiosity took over, and the princess touched the spinning-wheel, and the needle pricked the finger. With the curse activated, the princess fell asleep.

Devastated, the King and Queen placed their precious child on a beautiful bed, high up in a tower. The fairy placed protection spells upon the room, so there would be no disturbances from anyone. But then the powerful woman came back to the castle, to gloat on the death of the princess. She became enraged to find that her curse was changed. The woman slayed all the people of the court, and ruined the castle. However, that one tower could not be touched, and the woman was not able to reach the princess. So she placed a spell on the castle, so that no prince will ever try to reach the sleeping princess. A thick forest grew, with vines and thorns surrounding the castle. Then a dragon was placed, to fight all those that dared to set foot upon the castle grounds.

* * *

**Final Tale of All Time**  
**Chapter II:** _Lone Beauty Asleep_  
**By:** Kat Lee V (aka Datenshi No Uzumaki)

* * *

It was a sad and dreary sight. The forest was thickly surrounding the ominously dark looking castle. There were vines and overgrowth trying to swallow the ruined structure. A dark and gloomy sky loomed over the area. The overall picture was not a very fun or welcoming place.

A frown formed upon the young male wearing a red cloak and skirt. He stood upon a cliff, overlooking the castle, in the middle of the thick forest. There were a few stray crows that escaped from the tress. "What happened to this place?" Rin murmured. "I bet it was that old hag." He growled.

A sudden pulse of pain exploded from within, and Rin quickly clutched his chest, as he fell to his knees. He cursed under his breath, as he panted hoarsely. '_I have to find a safe place, right away._' Shakily, the teen stood up from the ground, and staggered away from the cliff side. He glanced up at the sky, and then more pain shot through him. Rin winced, and gritted his teeth. "Damnit, it had to be tonight of all nights." He hissed, and continued slowly down a straight path, with his hand still upon the area of his heart. "When I was so close..."

* * *

A tiny ray of light escaped between the dark clouds, and shined through a gaping whole of the ceiling. The small light hit a pale eyelid with long thick lashes, that caused movement to stir underneath. With a groan, ruby eyes slowly fluttered open, but then quickly shut close from the blinding light. After a while, the ray of light disappeared, becoming hidden behind the dark clouds. There was a long and slurred explicit curse, that echoed off the stone walls.

Sitting up, Rin held his head. It was a fuzzy pounding, that caused the boy to be disoriented. Slowly regaining awareness of his surroundings, Rin opened his eyes and looked around him. He was sitting on the stone hard floor, among some debris, and gravel. There were stone walls around him, while some parts were broken down. Above was an open ceiling, that had the view of a tower and gray cloudy skies. "How... how did I get here?" He groaned. There was a coldness that slapped against his bare body. His whole body shivered.

Unconsciously, his hand was feeling around, until it touched a red cloth. Rin looked down and found his red cloak. Suddenly his eyes widened, and he raised his hands up to see the red coloration staining his pale skin. '_What did I do?_' His mind whispered fearfully.

Growing sick, the boy scrambled up, and looked around. He saw the rest of his clothes and things, and quickly gathered them all. He ran out of the empty room, kept on running, until he was in what looked to be a courtyard. There was a broken water fountain that no longer worked, but it didn't deter the boy. He rushed to it, and ignored the murkiness of the water from the old fountain.

Aggressively, Rin was scrubbing his hands, then went to splashing his face. '_Oh gods... what have I done? What the hell happened?_' When the stains washed away, the boy looked up, and slowly processed his surroundings. He was in a ruined castle, where nature seemed to slowly engulf. There were vines, and thorns hugging every standing wall of the structure. Slowly, ruby eyes widened. '_I'm in the castle?_'

Rin stood up, and shivered. He looked down upon himself, and blushed brightly. He quickly put on his clothes, and draped his cloak on his shoulders, bringing back the warmth to his body. The boy then tried to retrace his steps back to where he woke up, in case he missed any of his belongings. He suddenly stopped when he stood in front of the knocked down walls that hid what looked like the grand hall or throne room of the castle. Rin nearly forgot how to breath when he saw the sight before him.

At the far end of the grand hall, there was a large, scaly body, unmoving, as if it broke through the walls. There was blood, and debris all over the big room, as well as scorch marks and claw marks. Rin knew not to step into the room, but his body seemed to move on its own. He silently looked around, and neared the giant, hopefully dead, reptilian body. He could see bites and big gaping scratches and cuts upon the tough looking hide of the animal. "A... dragon?"

A sudden loud whistle caused the red haired teen to jump high on his spot. Rin turned around, glaring hard at the culprit that tried to give him a heart attack. Slowly ruby eyes widened in recognition. "Kisumi?" He gaped with surprise.

A male teen, about the same age as Rin, was leaning against what was left of the wall, at the entrance of the grand hall. He was tall, with tousled peach colored hair. He was grinning widely, as his violet eyes glittered with amusement. He wore a grand looking attire, fit for a royal, with silver metal arm guards, and silver shoulder protectors and chest plate. He had a red cape, hanging behind him, and a sword in its scabbard, tied to his side. He had an image of a gallant Knight, or royal hero, without the full body armor. "Don't mind if I do." The taller male replied, as he hopped over the broken wall, and headed towards the red hooded male.

Rin glared at the approaching teen. "Don't you dare, idiot!" He barked, baring his sharp teeth as a threat.

The pale haired male held out his hands defensively. "Calm down there, princess, I was only joking."

"Don't call me that." The red head hissed.

Kisumi laughed, and came up to the other teen. He draped his arm around the red head's shoulder, smiling widely. "It's been awhile, Rin."

"A month is not long enough." The other muttered to the side.

"Aw, Rin-chan is so mean to me." The princely male pouted. The red head rolled his eyes, and swatted away the taller teen's arm from around his shoulders. Kisumi raised his head, and looked around the scene. "Wow, I wonder what happened here?"

Expression falling, Rin turned around, back to the other male. "I wouldn't know." He muttered a bit softly. "I just found it like this..." Shaking his head, the red head turned around, narrowing his eyes up at the other boy. "Why are you here, Kisumi?"

The taller male's expression brightened, and he was grinning widely. "Well, I was told that there was a princess, sleeping in this castle, waiting for a dashing prince to break a curse with a kiss!" He exclaimed excitedly.

Rin snorted. "You serious?"

Kisumi nodded. "That's right. Haven't you heard of this place, the Aurore Kingdom, settled upon the Land of Butterflies?" He turned around, surveying the structure of ruins. "Something tragic happened to this once thriving castle. No one survived, except for a beautiful sleeping princess, protected and blissfully unaware in that tower." The lighter haired male pointed at the last standing tower of the castle, peeking from the broken ceiling. "No one was able to ever reach that princess, because of a horrible dragon that would kill all that set foot in this castle." He gestured to the bones that littered the floors of the area. Rin shuddered at the gruesome scene.

Both males looked over at the still body of what was once a living dragon. "I wonder, if the one who slayed this dragon is still here, and is after my prize?" Kisumi wondered.

"Your prize?" Rin blanched. He shook his head. "Please, you didn't even earn it. And don't think of a princess as some kind of possession, you dumb-ass." He not so softly punched the taller male's shoulder. "But if you say there is someone here, then maybe we should check it out?" He glanced over at the tower.

The taller male threw his hands up, cheering. "Yay! I can finally get myself a princess!" Then he ran off from the bloody battle ridden room.

Rin sighed. "Might as well make sure he won't harass this princess..."

* * *

Though from the outside, it looked like the structure was falling apart, the higher they climbed up the tower, they saw how pristine the stone walls and steps were. The two males stood in front of the big purple double doors. They looked at one another, before the tallest teen took the handles, and pushed open the doors. Inside was slightly dark, with the dim lights from outside as the only source of visibility. The two males silently walked into the spacious room.

Rin looked around, admiring how there was no speck of dust or dirt any where. The only furniture in the room was a hanging crystal chandelier, a big red rug under a large canopy bed. The candles of the chandelier suddenly lighted up, brightening the room. '_Definitely magic_.' The red head thought, as he stared at the small sparkles of light and color bounce off from the crystals of the chandelier.

Lowering his head, he saw Kisumi already approaching the bed. The lavender drapes were drawn close, hiding what could be the sleeping princess. Rin held a dead panned expression, watching the young prince. He came up from behind the taller teen. The pink haired male pulled back the curtains of the canopy bed, and widened his eyes. Rin moved around, and blinked several times.

On the bed of lavender sheets laid a figure with short dark blue hair and pale skin. The bone structure of the person's face allowed the two males to recognize that it was a boy too. The male princess wore a beautiful, nearly glittering, deep purple dress, with golden linings. Upon his head, was a golden tiara, with blue, red and lavender jewels. The two teens couldn't deny that the princess was indeed beautiful.

"Rei..."

Kisumi blinked, tearing his gaze away from the sleeping beauty, and looked at his companion. "What was that?" He questioned.

Rin shook his head. He stepped away from the bed, and towards the lone window of the room. He stared outside the sad looking scene, compared to the enchanting atmosphere of the room. "Do you know what happened to this Kingdom, and to the princess?" He asked deftly.

"Well..." The taller teen straightened his back, and crossed his arms, with a clang of the metal. "From the stories I heard, some angry dark fairy came and placed a curse on the princess. I'm not clear what the curse entails, but he fell into an eternal sleep. The dark fairy came back to kill the princess, but couldn't, because the good fairy protected him. So the dark fairy used her rage to destroy everything else, especially the King and Queen..." Kisumi sighed. "At least that's what I heard." He looked up at his companion. "Pretty sad, huh? A gorgeous kingdom laid out into ruins, because of a petty jealous fairy."

Ruby eyes glazed over for a while, before consciousness snapped back to reality at the clanging of metal. Rin turned around to see Kisumi leaning down over the sleeping princess. The red head's eyes widened, and he moved quickly. "Wait-" He tried to push the other boy away, but tripped on a fold of the rug.

Kisumi landed on his bottom, and he hissed in pain. "Rin~" He whined. "Why did you push me? I would have-" The boy blinked his purple eyes. In front of him, he saw Rin, as if tossed on the bed, on top of the violet wearing princess. Not only was the position the red head was in looked presumptuous, but the connected lips between Rin and the princess did not help. "No way! That was supposed to be my kiss!" The pink haired prince nearly cried childishly.

The red head jerked away, with his wrist vigorously rubbing his lips. "I didn't do it on purpose! It was an accident, dumb-ass! And that couldn't have done anything anyways! I'm not a freakin' pansy prince!" His face was brightly red, replaying the scene and action that just happened moments before.

"But Rin~"

The sound of glass shattering caused the two boys to pause with silence. They looked around, unsure what it was they heard, or where it might have come from. But then they saw a transparent glowing butterfly flap its wings, appearing above the princess's forehead. Then the male princess was glowing, and glittering lights appeared, gathering towards the butterfly. With more flaps of its wings, the butterfly took off, taking with it the glowing light and glitter. It escaped out the open window. Then the brightness of the room died down to the lights given off from the candles of the chandelier.

"What... just happened...?" Rin carefully questioned, as he watched the violet dressed male.

With a groan, the male princess stirred from his bed. He sat up, and stretched out, while giving a big yawn. Then the male princess dropped his arms in front of him, as he was hunched over slightly in the bed. After a few moments of stillness, the male sat up, rubbing his eyes, until bright amethyst eyes fluttered open. Blinking a few times, the young looking male started to pat his hand around, as if looking for something.

Rin didn't know he was holding his breath, until he became aware of his surroundings when the violet princess started to move around. From the corner of his eye, he saw a small table that he didn't notice before. It sat alone at a corner, and on top of it were a pair of red framed glasses.

"Here."

The male princess paused in his actions, and raised his head. He squinted his eyes through the blurriness, and saw something being handed to him. The young man reached out, and took the object. Unfolding the red glasses, he placed it over his eyes, and his vision became clearer. He pushed the frames higher, and turned his head. He found a red hooded male, and another on the floor, staring with wide eyes towards him. "Huh? What's going on? Who are you two?"

Kisumi jerked his head towards the red head, and threw his arms around the waist of the teen. "That's not fair, Rin! He was supposed to be my princess to kiss! I can't believe you! You're not even royalty, how can it be!? Is it 'True Love'? That's just some fantasy bull! No fair!"

Rin was struggling to push the pink haired prince off of him. "I told you, it's not my fault! And I thought it was a prince that could only break the stupid spell." The red head got more annoyed. "Let go, you dumb-ass! And it's not true love, that's some lame make believe shit!"

"Excuse me."

The two froze, the words cutting their squabble. They blinked and looked over at the blue haired princess. He flushed at the sudden attention, and he bowed his head. He slightly covered his face, raising up his glasses. "This may seem sudden, but could you please explain to me what is going on?"

Breaking the silence, Rin sighed, his shoulders drooping. "Yeah, about that..."

* * *

Slowly and gently, a bouquet of various flowers was placed on top of the nicely made bed, with two old rusted crowns. Stepping back two steps, the blue haired princess with glasses, knelt down, forehead pressed on the soft mattress of the bed. Silently, all the memories from what had happened before he fell to the endless sleep of the curse, and the things that both the armored prince and red hooded male told him, played in his head. He remembered his thirteenth birthday being ruined by a woman dressed in black, placing a death curse on him. He recalled a good fairy, changing the curse, but the details was left out from his mind. He remembered, on his sixteenth birthday, touching the needle of the spinning-wheel, and blacking out. Then waking up, as if a year hasn't gone by. The princess fortunately still also remembers his name, and his identity as princess of the Kingdom of Aurore, Rei.

After Prince Kisumi and Rin told him what they heard about his ruined home, they left him alone. But then the red hooded male returned, questioning what will he do now that he was free from the curse. Rin told him that he was after the same woman that was the cause of the princess's devastation. He was looking for her, but left out the real reason, just that he had to settle things with her, because she also did something to him.

Then Prince Kisumi came back to the room, and presented the two crowns that once belonged to his parents, which he found lying among scattered bones. It was then that the princess finally broke down, being overwhelmed with the death of his parents and ruins of his home. All happened while he was sleeping, blissfully unaware, and protected by magic, up in the tower, alone.

A hand clutched tightly on to the blanket on top of the bed, forehead pressing down further into the mattress. "Chichiue, Hahaue, where should I go from here? What else can I do from now on? I'm all alone, and our beautiful home is no more." Rei hoarsely whispered, his eyes tightly closed. "I... I don't think I know how to rebuild this kingdom. I don't think I'm even confident enough to take over as Queen of this kingdom yet. Please, Chichiue, Hahaue, show me what I should do."

Silence blanketed over the room, but then was broken when a faint sound of a horse could be heard from outside. Slowly, the hands clutching on to the lavender sheets relaxed, and the princess raised his head from the bed. Rei blinked his eyes, seeing a blurred image in front of him. He quickly rubbed his eyes with the sleeves of his dress, and scrambled to put his glasses on properly.

There, at the tip of the King's crown, was a faint glimmer of a softly glowing butterfly. It's wings were slowly opening and closing. Rei was in awe, unaware that his breath was being held as he watched the beautiful insect. Then the butterfly fluttered its wings, and took off through the window. Rei scrambled up from the ground and ran towards the only window of the room. He saw the butterfly fluttered away into the grayed sky. When he heard the neighing horse again, Rei looked down and saw Prince Kisumi and Rin, walking side by side, with a white horse at the other side of the gallant prince. They were walking up to the entrance of the castle, with the draw bridge down, and half the wall toppled down. Violet eyes locked on to the back of the red haired male, dressed in a short red skirt and red cloak.

Lips pressed tightly to a line, and violet eyes hardened with a set emotion, Rei turned around, walking away from the window. He knelt down beside the bed, watching the two crowns. "I know now what I want to do." He spoke with confidence in his tone. He reached up to his head and raised the tiara. Then he placed it in front of the two crowns. "I do not think I will be fit as Queen to this kingdom, unless I get rid of the one enemy that has destroyed it." Rei stood up, with his fists clenched tightly to his sides. "Chichiue, Hahaue, I vow to avenge your deaths and the destruction of this kingdom. I will not return, until that dark fairy is put to a stop of her evil ways." Violet eyes glistened with determination and courage.

* * *

"And, where are you going now?" Rin leaned his shoulder against the broken down frame of what was left of the castle wall entrance. The red haired male watched as Kisumi was adjusting the saddle of his white horse.

The pink haired male looked up, grinning. "Why? Is Rin-chan worried for me?"

"As if, idiot!" The red head barked with a glare.

Kisumi laughed, and then smoothly mounted his horse. He shifted and patted his horse, as he regained balance. "I'm off to find me another princess, since you stole this one. I heard there was another one in dire need of help, and maybe a kiss or two from a dashing prince."

Rin rolled his eyes. "More like harass her, and I only see a lame prince."

"So mean~" The pink haired prince whined childishly.

The red head shook his head. "You never told me why you're after princesses."

Kisumi smiled and winked. "That's a secret that requires a price, Rin-chan, like a kiss." He tapped his lips in a teasing way towards the red head.

Rin growled. "Just get out of here already!"

The prince laughed out loud, and the horse trotted forward a few steps. "Oh!" Kisumi looked over his shoulder at the red haired male. "What will you do with the princess, now that his curse is broken, and no place of his own? I don't think he'll be safe by himself in this run down place. Since the dragon is dead, I think the bandits and thieves that decided to live on these lands would sooner or later come here. Plus, what's left of this kingdom's people are in disarray since their ruler died. It's a bit chaotic, if you ask me."

Rin waved a hand, in a shooing manner. "That's something I should worry about, and something that the princess has to decide on his own. Don't you have some kind of quest you need to complete? Isn't there some princess waiting for you?"

"Sorry for being concerned." The pink haired male sighed, and then clicked his heels against the horse. "Well then, see you around, princess!" Then Kisumi dashed off on his horse through the forest. Rin snorted, and pushed himself off the support he was leaning on.

"Rin-san!" The red head perked at the call of his name. He turned around, and looked up in surprise when he saw a familiar figure walking up to him.

The fancy violet dress of the princess was no more, and he was dressed down to something more comfortable and less attention grabbing. He had a black bodice over a light collard shirt, and a flowing gray-purple skirt that came just below his knees. On the male's head was a black headband, with a purple butterfly ornament on the side. The blue haired princess looked up, and flushed when he saw Rin watching him. He pushed up his glasses, as he crossed his arms. "Er... I think this is more suitable than that fancy gown, don't you think?"

Rin's expression softened, and he gave a small smile. "It's fine, Rei. Have you made a decision on what you would be doing next?" He asked carefully.

The male princess took in a deep breath, and released it slowly. "Yes. I want to go with you, as you go after that woman, Rin-san."

The red head looked at the boy with surprise. "Are you sure you want to come with me? I could drop you off at a town in the next kingdom. You can start your life over there, and figure out whether you would want to rebuild your kingdom, or not."

Rei looked up at the red head, with eyes shining with conviction. "Like you, I have to settle things with that vile woman." He opened his hands out, gesturing the whole place. "She did this to my home, and I need answers. Why would she do this? What was she really after? What is driving that woman to do something so cruel as to murder a whole kingdom? Why not kill me from the start, instead of cursing me? I need to know. And who's to say that she is not causing more pain and suffering to others? We may need to stop her, somehow."

Then, the blue haired male looked up, a bit shyly, at the red head. "And... you'll need to take responsibility." He slightly pouted with a tiny streak of stubbornness and embarrassment.

Cheeks flushed, and Rin glared lightly at the other boy. "It's an accident, I tell you. It doesn't mean anything, okay?" He hissed.

Raising up his glasses, Rei stood up straighter. "Any way, you have my gratitude, for waking me up and freeing me from this prison, that used to be my home." He spoke softly.

The red head blinked, and then reached a hand behind his head, rubbing it. "Yeah well, it wasn't expected, but anything that has to do with that old hag, I'll undo them, just to piss her off. I have a bone to pick with her."

Rei nodded, no longer pressing the matter further. He was curious, but he can sense an aura around the red head that told him to back off, or he'll get bitten by defense."So, where are we heading off to, Rin-san?"

Pulling the red hood over his head, Rin turned around. "We'll be continuing north from here." He replied. "She has been heading towards that direction, from what I last heard." He looked over his shoulder. "You'll need to be on your toes. The lands beyond here are... a bit bizarre, and we could get lost or trapped in there." Rin started to walk away from the castle.

"If my memories serve me right, then the land north from here is... Wonderland." Rei replied. He had to run up to catch up to the red head. Then he paused, and looked behind him. He looked up at the broken walls that once surrounded the ruined castle. '_Chichiue, hahaue, I will stop this woman, before she causes more pain and suffering, just for the both of you._' He looked up at the sky, where the gray clouds were lessening, and rays of sunlight were filtering through. '_It's a promise. And please watch over me._'

"Hey, Rei!" The blue haired boy looked up to see the Rin, a few feet away, looking at him expectantly. "Hurry up!"

"Ah, yes!" Rei adjusted his glasses, before running after his new companion. "Please wait, Rin-san!"

From the castle grounds, two butterflies fluttered together past the broken walls, and into the clearing sky.

**End Chapter II**

* * *

**AN**: Princess Rei has appeared, and so has Prince Kisumi. I have no particular order of how these characters would appear, and Kisumi is just going to be a reoccurring character, not a main one like all the others (maybe just the general prince charming of all the princesses...). Rei had to appear next, because he's my second most fave character in Free. Everyone else is free game. I figured that there will be three parts: Rin with Iwatobi Swim Club, Rin with Samezuka Swim Club, then everyone all together. There is seriously a plot to this whole thing, so be patient. I'm hoping to end this series by fifteen chapters. The limit will be twenty, and I won't go over that. The next chapters are just introductions, and the building of the climax.

No, sorry, this isn't a RinRei. I just like throwing hints of little side and secret pairings I like. However, I decided, I'll make this HaruRin, unless you convince me to make it MakoRin in the end. The story can go two ways. But you're all welcomed to suggest other side pairings, though they won't be heavily hinted... (like HaruRin, and my play on Everyone x Rin...) I can work it out somehow. And I guess that's all I'm going to say.


	3. Down the Rabbit Hole

**On** a day, like any other ordinary day, a child sat under a tree, talking with an older sister. Until that day, in particular, became out of the ordinary, as the child spotted a white rabbit, dressed in a tailcoat, and holding on to a pocket watch. The child went after it, and followed it into a rabbit hole. Then fell through a long way in an odd tunnel. When the child landed, the child found long corridors, leading to unknown places.

Then the child found a door, leading to an enchanted garden. That was when the child met all sorts of strange creatures, and traveled all throughout the wondrous and surreal lands. One day, the child ran into a big talking caterpillar, smoking hookah. The wise caterpillar, though short tempered, and talking in riddles, questioned who the child really was. Unsure, the child became dubbed as "Alice".

"Alice" wandered for a long time, with a new identity. Then the child became welcomed to a 'mad tea party', and for a long time, "Alice" stayed as an honorable guest. However, the party came to an end, when a smiling cat approached "Alice", and that was when the child learned about the queen colored in red.

Saddened and angered of the unfairness and mistreatment of all the wonderful friends "Alice" made in such a short time, the child took a stand against the queen. Then one day, "Alice" was invited to the queen's castle, and was forced into an unfair trail. The child was accused of many things, but "Alice" was unafraid, declaring 'check' on the queen. It was the first time that hope felt like it returned to the strange lands, and "Alice" became a savior to the eyes of many. However, the more "Alice" advanced on the board, the more friends of "Alice" got captured. Hope was running thin, and "Alice" felt that a wrong move would place the child into a 'checkmate', ending this game that the queen and "Alice" were heatedly playing.

* * *

**Final Tale of All Time**  
**Chapter III**: _Down the Rabbit Hole_  
**By**: Kat Lee V (aka Datenshi no Uzumaki)

* * *

There was a fork on the road, and several signs, in various colorful designs, pointing to different directions. Two figures were staring up at those signs, and one held the expression of frustration and annoyance. Out of anger, the red hooded teen kicked the tree, with the signs, hard, causing one sign to loosen one side, and swing out of place.

"Rin-san!" Rei watched his companion, brows furrowing with concern and panic. He looked around, as if someone might have witnessed the public obstruction, and they might get in trouble for it. "Don't vent your anger on a tree." The blue haired teen fretted.

The red haired male hissed, and turned to the blue haired princess. "Those signs are no use, so it doesn't matter if a sign falls off or two." Rin ruffled his head, over his hood, vigorously. "I seriously hate this place with a passion! It makes no sense! We're going around in circles, and I swear we've ended up here for the third time!"

Rei sighed, adjusting his glasses. "That's what the Wonderlands is infamous for. That is why the Kingdom of Hearts, at the center of the Wonderlands, is said to be uninvadable. No mere invader can ever cross the natural mysterious defense of the Wonderlands without going insane." He informed in an intelligible tone.

Rin tisked, and looked at the two paths before him. Since they've passed through the boarders between lands, the scenery from the famous Land of Butterflies changed as they entered the Wonderlands. All of nature became more vibrant and colorful. The leaves were starting to have some strange shapes on to them, and the trunks glistening with certain colors, when looking at a certain angle. The flowers looked to have faces, as if sleeping. Rin didn't want to think about what would happen if those faces were awake.

"Rin-san, I was wondering." The blue haired teen spoke up. Rin tore his gaze from the scenery, and turned to the once cursed princess. "You've said that you've traveled all of the eastern kingdoms of this country. How was it that you crossed from the northern lands to my home kingdom and the Enchanted Forest? It is impossible to travel from the north, without going through the Wonderlands."

The red head reached out a hand, and rubbed the back of his head. "I went around it, to avoid traveling through the Wonderlands. Crossed the boarders out of the country, through the neighboring desert."

Rei slight widened his eyes in awe. "Oh, but didn't that take longer to travel?"

Rin shrugged. "At first, but then I ran into little desert cities. Would you believe that they have a magical flying carpet traveling service? It was very convenient. Something you don't see around here. It's a nice experience, if ever you do go to the neighboring country to the East."

"So there is magic beyond our country! I've read of it before, about the Arabian Deserts in the neighboring country to the East, but I was a bit skeptical, since they have no guardian magical fairies, or a counsel of witches and wizards like our country." The blue haired teen replied.

"They have Sorcerers and Sorceress, a whole different class of witches and wizards, and also more powerful beings call Genies that grant any wish you desire." Rin replied. Rei was smiling at the information that the red head gave to him. He was awed by the red head that traveled all around, seeing sights he has never seen. It always fascinated the male princess, hearing stories about other lands, that he has never read before.

The blue haired male blinked, and then turned to his companion. He decided to relieve the itch of a question that has been bothering him. "How long have you been after this dark fairy, Rin-san? If you don't mind me asking."

There was a far-away look on the red head's expression. "Five to six years." He murmured.

"Really? For that long? You can't be that much older than me, though." Rei replied with shock.

The red head turned to watch the blue haired teen, and he smirked. "I just turned 18 in winter."

The male princess's violet eyes widened. "Then you're only a year older than me? You've been after that dark fairy since you were twelve or thirteen? That's pretty young, isn't it?"

Rin shrugged, and turned around, his back to his companion. He kept silent. Rei's expression fell, watching the red head, feeling that the other male wouldn't say anymore on the subject. He knew that the older teen had been through a lot over those years, probably more worse than what he's been through, if it involved a certain woman. '_What did that dark fairy do to you, Rin-san? What was so bad that drove you to chase after this woman all over the country, and want to... possibly kill her since you were twelve years old?_' He wanted to ask, but didn't have the courage to pry. Rin shook his head, and suddenly threw his pointed finger at one direction. "We're going this way this time."

The blue haired boy blinked his eyes from the sudden change of mood. Rin looked over his shoulder at his companion. "Stay close to me. We don't want to get separated from one another." Rei nodded, and hurried after the red head. '_Though Rin-san may act as if he was open with his emotions, he's still a bit mysterious, closed off, as if hiding behind a mask, perhaps... I want to know, but I can't ask. It's inappropriate since we just met... but then..._' The blue haired boy slightly bit his lower lip. '_Why does it feel like I've met him somewhere, before?_'

* * *

The deeper they went through the forest of the Wonderlands, their scenery changed, and it became more colorful and literally loud. Several times Rin wanted to cut down the many groups of flowers they would pass by, as they were singing awfully too loud for the red head's taste. They even had the audacity to tease the two travelers with song. Rei struggled to pull the red head away from being guilty of floricide. Then the trees were also alive, moving their branches to tub on their skirts, and then whispering about the pair. Rei once again prevented his companion from becoming a murderer of trees. Once they passed through the strange forests, they came into a forest of giant mushrooms. It was better than the forest with talking and singing flowers and trees.

"Seriously, how far are we from that stupid castle?" Rin grumbled.

Rei looked around in awe, seeing how different the Wonderlands were from the lands that he was born from. "The Wonderlands is said to be the biggest areas of the country to the East. However, the Kingdom of Hearts doesn't necessarily own all of the lands. It is really hard to tell if we will be within the kingdom's actually acclaimed territory."

The red head tisked, crossing his arms, still in a bad mood from being harassed by silly plants. "I know that already." He growled. Suddenly, Rin looked up in alert, his eyes scanning the area. He narrowed his eyes, and glanced over at Rei, loudly admiring the giant mushroom that was about seven feet tall, and a vibrant color of blue and purple. "Rei, don't move!" He hissed.

The blue haired boy turned his head, blinking his amethyst colored eyes. "Rin-san?" The red head made a gesture to be quiet, placing a finger over his lips. The male princess watched curiously, as Rin turned around, staring off a distance. Then the red head stiffened. Rei heard noise coming from that direction Rin was facing. It sounded like loud footsteps, coming closer to them. There was some faint barks and gruff noises. "Rin-san?" The blue haired boy carefully inched closer to the other male.

Leaping over a wall of mushrooms, there appeared a young figure in a pale pink fluffy dress, and with a frilly white apron. The person had short wavy golden blond hair with a big black bow on top, and wide dark pink eyes. Rei widened his eyes when the blonde was over him. He was not able to react quickly enough, despite Rin's shouted warning. "Watch out!"

Rei was in pain. He slowly fluttered open his eyes, and froze when he found the blonde on top of him, their lips connected. He heard a choked sound coming from the side. Out of defense, the male princess pushed the pink wearing blond off of him, and scrambled away, hitting his back against one of the giant mushrooms. He was rubbing his aching lips with the back of his forearm. He looked off to the side, and saw Rin with his ruby eyes wide, but then there was a glint of amusement.

"Owie!" The blond groaned, and sat up, rubbing his head and lower back. "Aw man!"

"You!" The blue haired boy pointed at the blonde, his cheeks flaring in red. "What is wrong with you? Jumping out of no where, not caring of the consequences of your actions! You could have hurt someone! You ran into me!"

Rin walked up to his companion, a smirk of amusement on his lips. He offered out his hand to help the male princess off from the ground. "You need work on your reaction timing though, Rei. You know, so that you can avoid such incidents like earlier." The red head was chuckling, still couldn't get the hilarious earlier scene out of his head between the male princess and the unknown pink wearing blonde. The male princess was glowing as brightly as the red head's hood. Rin turned around to their surprise guest after helping Rei back to his feet. "And you, what are you in a hurry for? You should learn how to watch where you are going." He narrowed his eyes, a bit cautious in case the stranger was a weirdo that belonged to the crazy lands.

Magenta eyes fluttered open and looked at the two dress wearing males. "Sorry!" The blond moaned. At that moment the two males distinguished the boyish voice of the blonde, believing that the pink wearing person was a boy, like them. Said boy got up, and dusted the back of his fluffy dress. He suddenly gasped, and looked around. "We need to get out of here! It's coming!" The blond said urgently.

"W-what is coming?" Rei carefully asked, looking around warily.

Out from a wall of mushroom, behind the blond, there was a big strange monster than neither Rin nor Rei has ever seen. It was a mix of a bear and dog, with sharp fangs, and drool dripping from the corners of its mouth. It was heaving heavily. When it saw the three it started to growl in a threatening way, lowering its head slightly. Then the blond grabbed the two taller males, and pulled them away from the weird scary animal. "It's a bandersnatch! RUN!" The blond shouted.

The traveling pair did as they were told. Rin slipped his wrist from the blond, and glanced back. He saw the strange beast running after them, the bandersnatch, as what the stranger called it. The red head turned to the blond, who was dragging the blue haired princess. "What the hell did you do to get it angry? And what is that ugly thing!?" He shouted, jumping effortlessly over a large log on the floor.

"No time to talk, keep running!" The blonde replied, slightly out of breath. Rei was heaving, trying to keep up with the smaller male, allowing himself to be pulled around by his wrist. Then they made it towards the edge of a cliff, causing the three to skid closely into falling over. The blond boy peered over. "Jump, right now!"

Rei whipped his head at the shorter boy, with an outrageous expression. "What!? You want us to jump over a cliff that could possibly be our doom? Are you crazy!?" The blue haired princess wasn't able to say another word, as he was pulled roughly by the blond, who still had a hold on to his wrist. Rei didn't hold back as he was screaming. Rin slightly bit his lip, and looked over his shoulder, just as the huge beast appeared in his field of vision. The red head held his breath and leaped over the edge of the cliff.

Something below him seemed to have caught him, and Rin widened his eyes, as his fall was broken. He found himself being caught upon a giant purple leave. Then he slid down, and was caught again by another colorful leaf. After two more giant leaves, Rin hit the ground in a soft plop sound. He sat up, groaning a bit, and raising his chin high to see how far he fell. Then he whipped his head side to side, and felt relief to see his companion, lying on the ground a close distance, with the blond on top of him.

The blond shot up into a sitting position, and laughed, as if not bothered with what just happened moments ago. "Well, wasn't that fun?"

Rei quickly sat up, and frowned at the blond. "What do you mean 'fun'? We get chased from a wild beast and then jump off a cliff? You need to reexamine and redefine your meaning of 'fun'!"

"Aw, no need to be such a stiff. Relax!" The blond pouted childishly. The blue haired boy gave an undignified squawk, suddenly becoming unable to to make complete sentences.

Rin shook his head, and stood up, dusting his skirt and apron. "So, what's the deal with that animal?" The red head asked, watching as Rei and the blond get up from the ground, also patting down their skirts from the dirt from the ground.

"The bandersnatch?" The blond looked up at the red head, blinking his wide magenta eyes. "Well..." The shorter boy poked his cheek, looking a bit nervous, as he was drawing circles with the toe of his black boot. "I was walking around eating cake, but then I tripped on a root and it hit the bandersnatch. It got mad, so it chased me." He giggled guiltily. Rei and Rin stared at the blond, with a deadpanned expression.

Then the boy's expression changed, his eyes brightening and he was smiling widely. "I'm Nagisa by the way!" He grabbed Rei's hand, and shook it enthusiastically.

The blue haired boy was surprised by the sudden action, and had to fix the position of his glasses after it went askew from the rough hand shake. "Er, yes, my name is Rei."

"Rin." The red head replied curtly. He crossed his arm, avoiding the blond from grabbing his hands. "Hey, do you know how far the castle of the Kingdom of Hearts is from here?"

Nagisa pouted. "Why do you want to go there?" He has a slight whine in his tone.

"It's important that we head there, because there is someone we need to find, and was told that she was heading to that very castle." Rei replied.

The blond slightly tilted his head to one side, and placed a finger on his chin. He started to hum a bit, as if he was thinking. "I'd say you're about a few hours away from the castle. You might get there by night fall." Nagisa replied.

"Great, now point us there." The red head demanded.

Nagisa huffed, and crossed his arms. "No."

"'No'?" Anger grew in the red head's expression. He stomped over to the blond. "'No'!? We enter these damned lands, only to get lost because the stupid signs point to where ever the hell they point to are all lies. We get harassed by stupid trees and flowers that sing, very horribly if I might add. Get chased by some wild ugly monster all just because you toss cake at it to get it mad. Then you make us jump off a cliff, and we could have died!" Rei quickly went between the red head and blond, struggling to keep his companion from committing homicide. "You owe us, blondie! And I'm not going to spend another minute getting lost in these damned lands that I one day hope would just burn to the ground!"

"Rin-san!"

Nagisa was still pouting, not at all bothered by the shouts and threats from the red head. "You don't have to be so mean and bossy."

Rei kept back Rin who tried to lunge at the shortest boy. "Rin-san, please. Have some decorum." Then the blue haired princess turned to the blond. "Listen, I apologize on behalf of my companion here, but I admit I think I will also lose my mind and temper if I have to wander endlessly in these lands for any longer. Please, Nagisa-san, could you tell us the way to the castle of the Kingdom of Hearts?"

"You don't have to be so formal, Rei-chan. Nagisa is just find, no need for the 'san' part." The blond finally spoke, relaxing from his stance.

"C-chan!?" The male princess became flustered.

Nagisa suddenly thrusted a finger that the two taller male's direction. His eyes narrowed slightly. "And the truth is, no can find the real path to get to the castle, because they keep changing. If you pick the wrong one, you could end up all the way back to the entrance to the Wonderland forests."

Rin stepped back, and tisked. He pulled back his red hood, and raked his fingers through his hair, out of frustration. Rei looked slightly dejected, and turned to his older companion, as if looking for some answer to continue with their task. Nagisa watched the two, and then placed his hands on his hips. "Have no fear, for I know a way we can get through this." He raised his chin high with pride, grinning.

"Why didn't you just say that in the first place?" The red head growled, irritated.

"Aw, come on, where's the fun in that?" The blond pouted.

Rei had to hold the red head back from attacking the short blond. "I seriously think you need to rethink on the real meaning of 'fun', Nagisa-san."

"Mou! No, 'san', Rei-chan!"

"Ch-chan!?"

* * *

The trio were found walking in an almost open field, with a few giant mushrooms scattered around, and the grass nearly changing colors from green, blue and silver as the winds blew by. There were also some random patches of what looked like different colored dandelions. When the wind blew, a few of the seeds escaped from the dandelions, floating around and creating a colorful scenery.

"And where is it you are trying to lead us?" Rin waved his hand to push away a floating blue dandelion seed from his face. In front of him, he saw Rei sneeze and rub his nose.

Nagisa turned around, beaming widely at the two taller males. He started walking backwards. "There are only a few that can easily navigate their way around the Wonderlands. They have some kind of powers that can find the correct path to the castle." The blond replied, and turned around, leading the way.

"Who is it we are trying to find?" Rei questioned, sneezing again.

"The great and wise Mr. Caterpillar!" The blond stopped in his tracks and suddenly pointed ahead. "He's just up ahead!" He took off. "Hurry up, you two, before he decides to move to someplace else!" He waved at them, then ran off.

"Caterpillar?" Rin and Rei questioned at the same time in disbelief, then jogged after their little guide.

The forest was full of giant leaves, colored in blues and greens, and seven feet tall yellow and pink tulips. There were a few other giant mushrooms, and big boulders. The two taller males easily caught up to the blonde, who stopped in front of a big red mushroom. From their view, they saw some ringed smoke clouds rising from the top of the mushroom. "Mr. Caterpillar!" Nagisa called out, with a hand cupping the side of his mouth. "Mr. Caterpillar, I'm of need of your great wisdom!"

Rin and Rei watched the blond warily. They weren't sure of what they would encounter or see, as anything could happen when they were stuck in the Wonderlands. Then a giant blue caterpillar, holding on to what looked like a long pipe, connected to a strange golden vase, and a strange red hat with a tassel on top of its head, appeared, slowly crawling to the edge of the giant mushroom it was on top of. The caterpillar seemed to have pulled out a monocle from it's side, and placed it over its left eye. "Oh, Alice, what is it you want?" The caterpillar spoke in a drawl and monotonous voice.

Rei gasped and stepped back with shock from seeing the big talking caterpillar, while Rin's eye twitched. Shaking his head, Rin turned to the blond. "Alice?"

"Mou, Mr. Caterpillar, don't call me that! I keep telling you, I'm not Alice. My name is Nagisa!" The blonde stomped his foot, pouting.

The caterpillar took a long drag from its pipe, and released ringed puffs of smoke clouds. "As you say so, Alice." The blond huffed, and crossed his arms over his chest. "And what is it you ask of, Alice?" Then it adjusted its monocle and looked at the two guests that also arrived with the blond boy.

Rei raised his glasses, and raised his chin. "We would like to ask of a way to the castle of the Kingdom of Hearts, please."

"Was I talking to you?" The smoking insect puffed its smoke right at Rei's face. The boy started to have a coughing fit, while fanning away the smoke with his hands. Rin scowled, and open his mouth to speak his mind, but Nagisa interrupted.

"Don't be a meany to my friends, Mr. Caterpillar. They asked politely for a pathway to the castle." The blond clapped his hands together, and bowed his head. "Please? I'll pay you back on their behalf. I know what you want." He begged.

There was a moment of silence, as if the caterpillar was ignoring them while smoking on its long pipe. Then it adjusted its monocle and looked at the blond. "You should know by now, Alice, that the place you seek won't be found while being sought."

The blonde nodded, giving a soft smile. Rin and Rei both looked confused at what the weird caterpillar was saying. More clouds of smoke rose. "Invitations are being delivered for a ball. Messengers return by sundown tomorrow."

Nagisa grinned widely. "Got it! Thanks, Mr. Caterpillar! So what flavor do you want this time? Grape? Strawberry?"

"I have found butterscotch to be favorable for the moment." The giant insect replied.

"Oh, good one! You'll get it by the end of the week, promise!" The boy winked.

"The flowers are singing, and the trees whisper, Alice." Magenta eyes blinked, and stared as the insect pulled away its monocle from its place. "All hands revealed, and soon the favored prize will be loose. Red is becoming with anger and impatience. Be cautious, Alice." Then with a long drag and a long and big release of smoke, the caterpillar seemed to have disappeared from sight.

"That's it?" Rin questioned incredulously. "What the hell was that thing talking about?" He turned to the blue haired teen beside him. "Did you even understand half of the things it was trying to say?"

Rei frowned, and crossed his arms over his chest. He had one hand on his chin, with brows furrowed. "A ball? A warning?" He muttered, going over the words the giant insect was telling them.

"Don't worry guys, it's pretty simple, and the same thing Mr. Caterpillar always tells me." The blond placed his hand on his hip, and nodded to himself. "You can't reach the castle if you only think about going to the castle." Nagisa replied. The two older males just stared at the blond with expressions as if he made no sense. The blond sighed, a hand on his cheek. "It's so hard to explain to outsiders..."

Rei adjusted his glasses. "Then explain it to us, since you live in these lands."

The blond rubbed the back of his neck. "Er... well..."

"Stop stalling, and please explain, kid." Rin narrowed his eyes, and plopped a hand on top of the blond's head. "You're the only one we have to get us out of these damned lands and to that castle." He started to not so gently ruffle the shorter boy's hair, moving the black bow on the head out of place.

Nagisa pouted, and swatted the red head's hand away. "I'm not a kid! I'm seventeen you know!"

Rin rolled his eyes. "Could have fooled me." He muttered, and pulled his hand away.

"Come on, it's better if we go somewhere to talk. It seems like you guys won't be able to go to the castle until tomorrow. And it's better to get out from the open in these lands at night." The blond grabbed both male's hands and led them off towards a direction.

"What do you mean?" Rei carefully asked, staring at the back of the blond's head.

"Do we really want to know?" Rin grumbled, and allowed himself to be led by hand by their blond guide.

* * *

Nagisa pushed back a rusty tall gate, that was barely staying at its hinges. The blond walked through, and the two taller males followed. They looked around and saw that they stood in front of an old dilapidated house. The design wasn't consistent, with various faded patterns and colors. The windows didn't match either, nor were they set in perfect alignment. The door was even bent at some angle, not standing up straight like normal doors. In front of the house was a long table that looked to sit up to sixteen people. On the table were various teacups, teapots and saucers. No two sets were the same, while a few looked to have been broken too. Not even the chairs around the table looked to have an matching pair.

"Well, make yourself at home." The blond turned around and threw his arms out to his side, grinning widely. He hit something at the side pillar of the broken gate, and then the place became illuminated. There were various colorful lanterns in many different shapes that lighted up the strange front yard of the nearly falling apart house. They were all connected by wires, strew above the long table and the whole front yard, in no particular pattern. Looking around, there was no grass, but a dirt ground, with shining colorful pebbles, randomly lying around. Some of those scattered pebbles sparked with light from the lanterns.

Rei's jaw hung loose, with his mouth gaping, and Rin felt his eye twitch more. The red head cleared his throat, with a curled fist over his mouth. "I... like what you did to the place...?" He spoke carefully.

Nagisa giggled, and ran around the table to the door. "Silly, this isn't really my home. This belongs to some good friends of mine, but unfortunately, they're not here right not. They let me stay here." The blond explained. "Please, sit down, I'll get some snacks and tea. I'm sure you guys are hungry and tired from your travels." He disappeared behind the door. The two watched as the house lighted up inside, and they saw that the windows were all tinted in different colors as well.

Rin was the first to move, walking over to the end of the table, closer to the house. Rei snapped out of his stupor, and quickly followed behind the older male. Once they were seated, Nagisa came out with a rolling cart filled with an assortment of baked treats and three oddly shaped teapots. "Here we are!" The blonde just slammed an arm on to the table, and swept all the porcelain china off the edge of the table, clearing some space.

"Why!?" Rei shouted with outrage. "You can't just do that to fine china!" He cringed as more crashed to the ground, as Nagisa cleared more space. Rin's eye was twitching more.

"It's alright!" The blond reassured, as he placed all the treats from the cart to the table in front of his guests. "My friends always did it, and they seem to have an endless stock of dishes in their cabinets. They won't mind at all!" He laughed.

Rin stared at the desserts with distaste. "Isn't there anything else... besides sweets?"

Nagisa poured hot tea into a pink teacup, and handed it to the red head. "Nope." Then he handed a purple one to Rei. "Isn't it great?" He cheered, and sat down at the head of the table with his own cup of tea. "Desserts all day and everyday! It's a life!"

"Not if you want a heart attack." Grumbled Rin, and poked a cream puff that just rolled off its plate, on to the table cloth.

"Constantly eating sugar is bad for your health, Nagisa-san. It will cause all sorts of problems to your body, you know." Rei adjusted his glasses. "There's-"

"My, you sure like to talk all science and stuff, Rei-chan!" Nagisa cut in, as he leaned his chin on his hand, with elbow on the table. "You should know by now that anything is possible in our country, and it's never explained by science, but by magic!" He threw out his arm up to the air, as if to emphasize his words.

"I know that, but there are other things in our country that can function without relying on magic. Like our human bodies, or any other living things in life." The blue haired male interjected.

Nagisa pouted. "But it's no fun to know about those things, just that everything would be easier to understand because of magic!"

Rin groaned, and rubbed his temple. "As much as I'd love to hear you both debate between science and magic," the male spoke sarcastically. He turned to the blond, with narrowed eyes. "Don't you have some things to explain to us? We still need to get to the castle of the Kingdom of Hearts, which you said you are willing to help get us there."

"Aw, you don't have to be such a party pooper, Rin-chan." The blond moaned, and slumped back into the high back chair he sat on. The red head scowled at the name the blond called him. "So it goes like this, and you better not reveal the secrets of these lands." The blond shot up forward, and pointed at the two, leaning on the table. "Promise!" He narrowed his magenta eyes at them.

Rin raised his hands up in defense. "Promise, geez."

Rei nodded. "As do I. I will not tell anyone outside these walls."

Nagisa squinted, but then smiled widely in satisfaction. The blonde adjusted into a comfortable position on his chair, and leaned his cheek on top of his knuckles, with his elbow propped on the arm of the chair. "There is a saying among the dwellers outside the walls of the Kingdom of Hearts, and upon the Wonderlands. 'Seek not the destination, or else be lost, but follow the white rabbit, and you will discover the heart.'" Nagisa said carefully.

"This means that, if you have a place in mind, like you want to reach the castle, you won't get there, if you are only thinking about going to the castle." He explained. "If you want to get to a place, don't think of going to that place, but following someone that knows how to get through that will lead you there."

"So we need to follow someone that can get through these lands, and not think about going to the castle, but focus on that person." Rei carefully replied, trying to make the explanation sensible. "Who is it we need to follow? A white rabbit?"

"Exactly!" Nagisa pointed at the blue haired boy, grinning widely. "You see, Mr. White Rabbit is a messenger of the castle, and he can easily navigate his way around the Wonderlands. He's unaffected by the magical and natural defense these lands have. He's so reliable, and also very valuable to the Queen."

Rin furrowed his brows. "So, what the caterpillar said earlier is that the White Rabbit is out and about, sending out invitations. We need to find him, before he heads back to the castle, and follow him."

Nagisa nodded vigorously. "That's right!" Then he sighed, and slumped back into his chair. "But the problem is that, Mr. White Rabbit is tricky, and hard to track. But, we'll just have to stake out at one of the people the Queen would invite to her ball, and I have someone in mind." He reassured them with a big smile.

"Nagisa-san." The blue haired teen spoke up.

The blond puffed his cheeks, pouting. "Rei-chan!" He whined.

Rei sighed. "Nagisa-kun..." The blond sighed. "When you said that we will get lost with a destination in mind, how was it you found your way here, since paths are always changing, and never consistent?" He wondered out loud.

"Well, there's another trick." Nagisa sat up, and leaned his elbows on the table, chin resting on his intertwined fingers. "I only thought of eating the cake waiting for me here. And I followed my instinct that always led me back here." He replied. "If I think about sleeping in the comfortable bed of his house, then I'll be led back here safely. Thinking about little things, instead of the place, will be easier to navigate through these places. Like with Mr. Caterpillar. I told myself that I wanted to smell what kind of smoke Mr. Caterpillar was smoking, and then I found him."

Rin massaged his head. "So complicated." He groaned.

"By the way. Going by airship to reach the castle is the easiest way to travel, instead of walking on foot through the Wonderlands. Why didn't you catch an airship directly to there?" The blond questioned.

Rei cleared his throat, and bowed his head. "There are some issues that can't be discussed, and we can only say it's safer to travel by foot than through public transportation." The male princess replied.

"Oh I see, you're like runaways or something?" The blond hummed with interest. "Oooo, you're not like some ex-convicts, are you?" He gasped. "You won't kill me or anything? Are you going to steal the treasures of the castle, are you? No, maybe you're-"

"Hey, we're nothing bad, okay?" Rin interrupted the blond's babble. "And how about you, _Alice_? Is _Nagisa_ even you're real name?"

"Okay, fine!" The blond crossed his arms and pouted. "No one wants to reveal things about themselves, I get it. But just so you know, my real name _is_ Nagisa. The dwellers in these lands just like to call me Alice for no apparent reason they've never explained to me, okay?" He sighed.

Rei leaned in, and placed a hand over the boy's arm. "We'll trust you, Nagisa-kun." He replied calmly, with a small smile. The blond blinked, and then beamed brightly.

"Thanks, Rei-chan." Nagisa murmured softly. Then he raised a hand to cover the big yawn that escaped. "Well, I think we should all hit the hay. Big day tomorrow!" He hopped out from his chair. "Come on, I'll show you were you can sleep."

* * *

"And, who's house is this?" Rin wondered, as he stood behind the two younger boys, peeking through the hedge. The orange estate looked normal, three stories, with symmetrical windows and doors. There was a high hedge surrounding the residence, and the two younger boys were looking through, watching out for something.

"They call her the Duchess, and she lives about half an hour away from the castle walls. She likes her space. But she's a horrible woman, and not quiet appealing too." Nagisa whispered, loud enough for his companions to hear.

"Surely she can't be that hideous. You must be exaggerating." Rei commented, looking at the normal looking garden, compared to the surrounding strange forest of the Wonderlands.

The blond snorted. "Believe me, she's hideous. And so is her personality. I really hate her..." He grumbled.

Rin shifted his weight to his other leg, crossing his arms over his chest. "And how do you know this white rabbit would appear here?"

"Mr. White Rabbit likes to be on time, but the problem is, he's never on time, which is consistent." Rei and Rin turned to the blond, looking at him strangely, as if he was speaking in a foreign language. "You see, Mr. White Rabbit makes schedules, of when he should deliver messages at a certain order. The Duchess is his last person, and though he says he would get to her before lunch time, he actually appears before afternoon tea, at 3 o'clock, exactly."

"Three hours late?" Rei huffed. "Not exactly a reliable messenger." He muttered.

Nagisa giggled. "But that is how it is for Mr. White Rabbit. You can rely on his unreliability, but he holds great value to the Wonderlands." He nodded to himself. Rin rolled his eyes, affirming that he'll never try to put some understanding to whatever is involved with the Wonderlands. Rei was still trying to logically comprehend all the information he absorbed from such strange place.

Suddenly, a bell rang three times from the estate. Nagisa perked, and grinned widely. "Oh! There he is! Just in time to be late!" He whispered, leaning a bit more forward in the bushes. Rin and Rei narrowed their eyes, and spotted a rabbit, running on its two hind legs, and carrying a pocket watch. It was indeed white, and was wearing a fancy coat-tail jacket, with a royal sash and medal. Rin rubbed his head at the absurdness.

They watched as the white rabbit knocked at the door. And when it opened, a big cloud of pepper burst out, causing the rabbit to sneeze. Then a weird tall and slender looking woman came out, with a clothes pin on her nose, and carrying a big pepper grinder. "The Red Queen invites the Duchess to a ball tonight. There will be a special guest, and all must attend!" The rabbit spoke.

Rin narrowed his eyes, and frowned. '_Special guest... must be _her_._' He mentally hissed.

The woman nodded, and took the letter invitation. Nagisa jumped back, and grabbed both Rei and Rin's wrists. "Come on, before Mr. White Rabbit gets away." They ran around their hiding spot towards the entrance of the estate. Just as they spotted the white rabbit walk past the hedge, Nagisa leaped forward, and pointed at the small animal. "Mr. White Rabbit!"

The rabbit froze in place, and trembled. It slowly turned its head towards the pink wearing male. "A-Alice!?"

"Lead us to the castle, at once!" Nagisa demanded, ignoring the name the animal just regarded him as.

Getting flustered and overbearingly nervous, the rabbit pulled out a handkerchief from its pocket, and started to pat away its forehead and temple. "I-I'm s-sorry, Alice, b-but since t-the last incident, t-the Red Q-queen has b-been in a very b-bad mood lately... she made orders a-against you, Alice. And I'm n-no longer in her good graces. S-She's hunting down all that may be loyal to you..."

"What's going on!? Why are there ugly loiterers being noisy in front of my property!?" A high shrill caused the three boys and the rabbit to wince. They all turned their heads to find a woman with a giant head, and an almost sagging face. Rin and Rei flinched in reaction at the sight of the woman.

"Damn, it's the Duchess." Nagisa hissed.

The woman's eyes seemed to target on to the blond, and rage further distorted her already hideous appearance. "It's you!" She shrieked. "Help! The Criminal Alice is in my property!" She shouted.

"Criminal!?" Rei gasped in outrage towards the blond.

"And you thought we were ones?" Rin felt a bit offended, but also confused and shocked at all that was going on.

The blond laughed nervously, rubbing the back of his head. "Yeah... about that..."

"HELP!"

From the sky, there were cards flying around, as if forming a cyclone. Then they all piled on top of one another, landing in the center of the Duchess's front yard. Then the giant cards, one by one, stood up on legs, and in their arms had spears and shields. There were nine of them total, all a single suit of spades, and numbered individually. They uniformly took one step forward.

"That's our cue to book it!" Nagisa shouted, and turned around to get away. Rin and Rei didn't have to be told twice, and took off after their blond companion.

"What did you do, Nagisa-kun?" Rei shouted, as he jumped over a knee height mushroom.

"Why are they after you?" Rin questioned as well.

"It's a very long story." Nagisa leaped over a cluster of singing and dancing flowers. "All you need to know is that the Queen hates me." The blond replied.

Out from a wall of tall grass, the same big beast from yesterday appeared, baring its fangs, and growling threateningly. The blond yelped, and jumped back, bumping into the bespectacled boy. "Run!" The three darted away into the tall blue grass that loomed over them all. Nagisa was clutching on to Rei's hand, while the blue haired princess was holding on to the eldest boy.

Rin scowled. "Let me guess, that thing belongs to the Queen too, and it was chasing after you yesterday. You didn't accidentally drop cake on it." He grumbled, his mood turning south by the second.

"Better a bandersnatch, I always think." Nagisa muttered. "At least it's not the-"

Above, they heard a faint screech in the sky. The three boys paused in their run and dared to look up. They saw a small figure, flying in circles in the sky. It flew across the sun, its shadow over cast over them for only a moment. Nagisa paled. "This is not fun, at all." He whispered, and continued in his run. Then the three came out from the tall grass, and found themselves facing a tall cliff that blocked their path.

There was rustling in the tall grass, and the three boys inched back, until their backs in the side of the cliff. The said bandersnatch jumped out from the tall grass, and was stalking slowly towards them, growling and baring its fangs in a threatening way. Nagisa bit his lower lip. "Rei-chan, Rin-chan... I... I want to apologize to the both of you. Sorry I couldn't take you to the castle. Sorry I got you two caught up in my own mess. I never meant for it to happen, really." A small drop of tears formed at the corner of his dark pink eye.

Coming out of the tall grass were the tall card soldiers. They shuffled to block all exits of the three, with the bandersnatch in front of them. "Criminal Alice, you are under arrest, by orders of the Red Queen. We are to take you to the Kingdom of Hearts, so that you can face your execution without trial for the charges against you." One soldier spoke. "And we are to take all other accomplices with you."

"No! Leave Rei-chan and Rin-chan out of this. They never were involved in all the things I've done. Just take me." The blond took one step forward, throwing a hand out to his side, as if trying to shield the two taller boys from his enemies.

"That is not an option." The soldier spoke.

Suddenly there was a battle cry, and a figure dropped down from above, landing between the two groups. Nagisa gasped, seeing who it was. "Mr. White Rabbit!"

The little animal turned around, and looked up at the blond. "Please forgive me, Alice." The rabbit thumped its foot three times on the floor, and then a hole appeared below the three boys. Not able to say anything, the three crossdressing boys fell into the hole, screaming for their lives, and also out of sudden surprise. One voice was freely giving out explicit curses, especially stating its hate to the Wonderlands.

**End Chapter III**

* * *

**AN**: My favorite, cliffhangers! So this chapter turned out longer than the previous ones. But there is so much background story and details hiding behind Nagisa that can't be revealed yet and may take two chapters. You'll just have to deal with what's given out right now.

When are Haruka and Makoto, and the rest showing up? Be patient. Soon. Don't worry!


	4. Glass Coffin of White

**I**n a kingdom far away, a King had lost his beautiful Queen, after she gave birth to a lovely child. Years passed, and the lonesome King fell in love again. He remarried. The new Queen was said to be very beautiful, and the woman reveled in the praises of her beauty. However, there was one that rivaled such beauty, and it was the King's child, even at such a young age. The Queen soon became corrupted by anger and jealousy.

Then one day, the King suddenly fell ill, and died months later, leaving behind his beautiful wife and only child. The Queen, threatened by the princess's rivaling beauty, sent out a huntsman to kill the King's child. So on the next day, the huntsman went after the princess, but out of compassion and pity, the huntsman told the child of the Queen's betrayal. He sent the princess away from the kingdom, if only to protect the King's loving child. Then the huntsman returned, lying to the Queen that he has killed the princess, presenting a heart of a pig, said to be the princess's heart.

The princess, scared and alone, ran far away from the castle. Tired and lost, the child tumbled upon a small cottage, and took shelter in it, appearing empty of any person. It turned out that the cottage was owned by seven little working people, and they welcomed and took in the runaway princess, with the promise of taking care of all the chores of the house.

Everyday, the princess and the seven little people lived on peacefully in the little cottage, working out a comfortable routine. Until one day, the Queen discovered the treachery of the huntsmen, and that her late husband's child was still alive. The Queen found out where the princess was hiding, but could not touch the child, as the seven little people seemed to protect the princess.

So the Queen found a way around the seven little people, disguising herself as a common peddler, offering gifts to the princess. Each gift was cursed to kill the princess, but twice the princess was saved by the seven little people. However, after several attempts, the disguised Queen gave a poisoned apple. The princess took a bite, and fell to a curse. The little people, not able to find out what was wrong, thought the dear and lovely princess to be dead. Out of sorrow, the seven little people built a glass coffin for the princess. And there, the princess laid, in the middle of the forest, where the seven little people sorrowfully wept.

* * *

**Final Tale of All Time**

**Chapter Four:** _Glass Coffin of White_

**By:** Kat Lee V

* * *

A wave of water rushed up across the shore, and hit hard against the land, before pulling back into the ocean. The small beach was guarded by a high wall of a cliff side, and hidden between the big rocks was a pathway leading to a forest. From the waters arose a boy, with short raven hair, slowly walking towards the steady grounds of land. Unaffected by the crashing waves hitting against him, the pale young man continued walking, until the waves no longer was able to reach his heels. Shaking the water from his head, the raven haired boy raised his chin, opening his ocean blue eyes. The boy, though had a beautiful appearance, held an expression of indifference.

With a bow of his head, the boy headed to the rocks, where a light blue cloth sat. In one swift motion, the cloth was straightened out, and then wrapped around the boy's shoulders, covering his bare chest. Carefully the boy fixed something on the side of his head, then looked up at the darkening sky. On the side of his head was an ornament, of a seashell with a starfish. Brushing a few of his bangs from his eyes, the boy started to walk away from his spot, towards the only small outlet from the private beach. He walked on in only a dark swimming leg skins and his light blue cloak.

Suddenly the boy stopped, and blinked his ocean blue eyes. He slightly turned his head, facing the cliff side. Just a yard above his head, there appeared a hole on the cliff side. There was a faint sound, that seemed to get louder by the second. The sounds became distinguished as three different notes of screaming. The boy narrowed his eyes, and thought he saw something coming out of the hole. Then his eyes widened when three figures came out, screaming. Unable to react quickly enough, those three figures fell out the hole, and down the side of the cliff.

Bodies were piled on top of the other on the sand. There were groans and mutterings coming from the pile. One person in particular, shoved the two bodies that was on top. "Damnit! I'm never going to trust talking rabbits, ever again." A red head male sat up, rubbing his head. He was wincing with pain.

A blue haired male panicked, and was patting around, looking for something. The red head saw the anxious state the other was in, and saw a pair of red glasses glinting from the rays of the sun. The blue haired boy stopped in his search when something was shoved in front of his face. He took the object, and relief was present on his expression. He started to clean the glass with his skirt, before placing them over his violet eyes. "Thank you very much, Rin-san." He sighed with gratitude.

"Mou!" A blond boy shot up from the ground, sitting up with an irritated pout. "I can't believe Mr. White Rabbit did that! He'll get beheaded for sure." Then the blonde began to fret. "I hope he'll be okay."

"Mind explaining why a whole kingdom would go after you, _Alice_?" The red head narrowed his eyes at the blond.

"Mou, Rin-chan! My name is not Alice, it's Nagisa!" The blond whined.

"I think you owe us an explanation then, Nagisa-kun." The blue haired boy spoke. He raised his head and surveyed their area. "Because of that setback, I believe we're even further from our destination. We're no longer in the forests of the Wonderlands."

"Rei-chan..."

Rin shook his head, and rubbed his temple. Irritation was overtaking his emotions. Suddenly, he felt something not right. He glanced down, and widened his eyes. With a small yelp of surprise, Rin scrambled back from his spot. The two younger teens looked over, and saw a person, lying, unmoving on the ground. Nagisa gasped, and scrambled up to the person's side. "Oooo, what happened?" His head hovered over the the head of the unresponsive person. "You... you didn't kill him, did you Rin-chan?"

"Shut up!" The red head hissed with a scowl. "I didn't kill the guy. We all must have fell on top of him, when we were thrown out that rabbit hole. So it's not only my fault!"

Rei cautiously crawled over, and looked at the raven haired male. "He looks to be breathing..."

Nagisa reached out his hand, and started to poke at the pale cheek. "He looks to be about our age too."

The blue haired princess slapped the blond's hand away. "Stop doing that. That's rude, you know."

Rin crawled over, his head hovering with the others, over the unconscious male. "I vote in just leaving him here before he wakes up. It will save us a lot of trouble."

"I say we dump the body into the ocean, and we run. No one will trace it back to us, and we'll be safer that way." The blond replied. There was a small twitch from the raven's fingers, which no one noticed.

"Um, excuse me, but this person is not dead! And this is why you're labeled as a criminal, Nagisa-kun!" Rei frowned, giving a disappointed look at the blond. "Your ideas are inhumane and unjustifiable. I guess I should be worried about my own life when around you."

The blond gasped loudly. "How could you, Rei-chan? I'm not a murderer. I swear, I haven't killed anyone, not even harm a stupid fly." Eyes tightly wrinkled close, and nose scrunched up.

Rin sighed, shaking his head. "I also question if you're rightly sane, since you have been living in the Wonderlands, for gods know how long." There was a small sound, and the three suddenly became quiet. They peered down at the raven.

Ocean blue eyes suddenly snapped open, causing the three to jump in surprise, hitting their heads against one another. They all moved back, hissing in pain, while holding their aching heads. The raven haired boy slowly sat up, and looked around, seeing the three holding their heads, and groaning. Blue eyes narrowed, not able to recognize any of them.

"We're too late, we've been seen. We can't get rid of him anymore." Nagisa roughly whispered, though it wasn't so quiet.

"Honestly, Nagisa-kun, we're not ever getting rid of any bodies." Rei rubbed the bridge of his nose, before fixing the position of his glasses.

Ruby eyes slowly opened, and caught a pair of ocean blue eyes staring. Rin slowly blinked, and stared at the raven, with as much intensity as the other had on him. Then a scowl formed upon his lips, with his irritation rush back over him. "Hey, what's your problem? Huh? Not going to say anything?"

Rei raised his hands, trying to calm his red head companion. "Look, no need to cause any stir." The blue haired boy looked towards the indifferent expression the raven haired male had. "In behalf of myself and my friends, please accept our apologies. We did not mean to fall on top of you. I hope you are not injured anywhere. And what ever Nagisa-kun said about getting rid of you, he clearly jests."

Dark pink eyes blinked, and then laughter erupted from the shortest male. "Oh gods, Rei-chan! You crack me up! The way you speak is so funny!" Nagisa started to roll around the sand, clutching his stomach as he laughed.

The blue haired boy's face flushed with embarrassment. "The way I speak is not in any way to be laughed at. I speak in a proper way that I was taught to." He crossed his arms, and turned his head away with a huff. "I believe it is you, Nagisa-kun, that needs to learn how to speak properly."

Without a word, the raven haired boy got up, and started to walk away from the three boys. Rin suddenly grew more annoyed, and scrambled off the floor. "Hey, you! Where do you think you're going?"

"Ah! Rin-chan! Wait up!" Nagisa hurried after the red head.

"Eh?" Rei quickly got up, dusted the sand off his skirt, and ran after his two companions. "Nagisa-kun! Rin-san! Please, don't leave me behind!"

* * *

Since the first time he looked into those eyes, there was just something about the dark haired boy that couldn't leave Rin alone. It bothered him greatly, that he couldn't just let that boy with the eyes as clear as water get away from him. '_What am I doing, chasing this guy? I don't even know him. But I just can't leave him alone! It must be because of the way he didn't react to Rei's heartfelt apology, nor accept it... yeah, that must be it! No one just walks away without a word, especially in a situation like that, right? It's... it's rude!_'

The red head weaved through the trees, and hopped over bushes and fallen logs. Rin lost sight of the boy, but he could have sworn he caught glimpses of the hem of that boy's light blue cloak. Faintly, he could hear the shouts of his younger companions from behind him. But Rin didn't stop, until he came upon a clearing, with a quaint little house at the center. The red head blinked in surprise, not expecting a lonesome place in the middle of the forest, that was possibly miles away from any civilization. There was a river running close to the little house, and a small bridge built over it. There was also a small patch of a garden, that looked carefully tended. '_Does that guy live in this house?_'

Rin stepped out from the bushes, and walked into the clearing. The boy neared the cabin, and stared at it in surprise. The house was much smaller up close. The door came only up to his shoulder. He wondered how it was that raven lived in such a tiny place. But the house looked quite big, as he guessed it was two stories. As Rin made it on top of the bridge, he suddenly stopped, and raised his head. Distantly, he could hear something, other than the calls from Nagisa and Rei.

"Rin-chan! There you are!" The blonde panted, as he stepped over the bushes, into the clearing. He bent over, with his hand on his knees, trying to catch his breath. "Why didn't you wait for us, when we called for you?"

"Is that a house?" Rei came out into the clearing, also panting. He dusted his skirt and fixed his glasses. "Does that boy from the beach live here?"

The red head hushed the two. "Quiet." He looked around, and then started walking off to the side, away from the small house.

"Ah!" Nagisa and Rei hurried to catch up to the eldest teen.

Following a small dirt path, the trio came upon a big clearing, a field full of beautiful white flowers. The afternoon sun seemed to shine brightly on the area, illuminating the grass and flowers to glow in an ethereal radiance. Upon the center of the field gathered seven little possibly children, surrounding what looked like a glass case. The angle of the sun reflected off the glass, hiding what was within the case. The seven children were all crying, some sniffing. The trio felt the melancholy atmosphere, despite the radiant beauty surrounding the area. Rin's ruby eyes widened, when he saw the raven haired boy from the beach.

Suddenly the cries were all silenced, and everyone turned their attention when the sound of a horse neighed loudly. A white horse stepped through the shadows of the thick forest, into the open field. Upon the horse, shined a young man, who gracefully slipped off the side of his horse, holding on to its reigns.

"Ah!" Rin widened his eyes more at the sight of the sudden newcomer. "Kisumi!"

The nearly sparkling young prince raised his head, and looked surprise at the person at the other side of the field. "Oh! You're here too?" Suddenly he became defensive, narrowing his eyes at the red head. "You're not here to steal another one of my kisses, are you Rin-chan!?"

Nagisa gasped, scandalized, and quickly turned his head to the red head beside him. "Steal a kiss!? What does he mean, Rin-chan!?" The blond started to tug at the hem of the red head's cloak. "C'mon, spill the beans! Don't leave me hanging!" To the other side, Rei was hiding his blush behind his hand over his face.

"Shut up! I'm not stealing any kisses from anyone!" The red head shouted, with an angry blush upon his face, as he glared at the peach haired prince. "And what the hell are you doing here, stupid prince!?"

Kisumi gasped dramatically, with a hand on his armored chest plate, looking offended. "Rin-chan, why must you always be mean to me?" He childishly whined.

"Um, excuse us, but what are you _all_ doing here?" A small squeaky voice spoke up. All attention was on the people gathered around the center of the flower field, with the glass case. There were, what looked like, seven children with pointy ears, dressed in simple tunics, leggings and pointed caps. But what threw most of the arrived boys off were the obviously fake white beards they all wore, hanging off strings. It was a bit of a comical sight, despite the tense and morose atmosphere hanging around them earlier.

With a toss of his cape, Kisumi walked forward, smiling in a friendly way. "I'm Prince Kisumi from the country of the West, and I have come to break the curse of the lovely princess, sleeping in that beautiful glass coffin you have behind you." He gestured out towards the glass case the children were surrounding.

Ocean blue eyes glared threateningly at the peach haired prince, and then the seven children became defensive, protecting the glass case from the strange young man with armor. "There is no way we will let you get near Mako-chan!"

"Yeah! How do we know you're even a real prince?"

"Mako-chan is not cursed!"

"Mako-chan is... Mako-chan is... dead!"

"No matter what we did, Mako-chan wouldn't wake up again."

"Go away, you weirdos. Leave us to cry over our dear, Mako-chan!"

Then one brave little child, with wired rimmed circular little glasses, stepped forward, trying to glare threateningly. This one looked a bit like a girl behind that fake beard. "Please, just go away. We've already been through a lot, as our dear Mako-chan has left us. We don't need some fake lies about curses. There is no way you can revive the dead." The silent raven haired male came up from behind the one child, and placed his hands on the female child's shoulder. Those blue eyes narrowed, as if emphasizing the words of the girl with wire rimmed glasses.

Kisumi raised his hands up defensively. "Please hear me out. A fairy came to me and told me that there was a princess, who nearly died and was placed a curse, by eating a poisoned apple that was given to her by the evil Queen. But this fairy said she came in time, to change the curse, in order for her to be saved. She said she spoke to someone close about it, and that this princess will be saved."

Rin and Rei raised their heads in alert and attentiveness. Blue eyes blinked, staring intently at the peach heard male. The prince threw back his cape, and gracefully fell to one knee, bowing his head. "I promise you, I am not here to harm your dear Mako-chan, but save her, if you allow me. The good fairy told me that with a kiss from a prince, your Mako-chan will surely wake up from the horrible curse placed on her."

The seven little children looked at one another, bringing their heads together. "Hear that? He said he was told by a good fairy."

"Yeah, and he knows about the poison apple. Surely a good fairy did tell him about it."

"I don't know, will Mako-chan really wake up by just a kiss?"

"But he said that a fairy talked to someone about it, Mako-chan waking up again by that kiss!"

"Who was it that the fairy talked to? It wasn't me."

"Me neither."

Behind the seven children, the silent raven haired boy blinked. His expression became deadpan, and then he bowed his head, wanting to shrink into his light blue cloak. He was fidgeting in place, recalling something from a while back.

Rin sighed, and rubbed the back of his head. "Seriously, this is getting a bit ridiculous." He muttered to himself. Then he took a step forward. "Listen, I know this guy, and his sources of information are quiet reliable." The red head reasoned. Several heads all turned towards the red cloak wearing boy. "Look, if he goes and kisses your Mako-chan, two things could happen. The princess wakes up, then everyone will be happy. If the princess doesn't, then I promise, you can beat up this stupid prince for harassment. Deal?"

"What!?" Kisumi cried. "Rin-chan!" He whined.

The seven little children gathered again, whispering among each other. Once in a while, a few would look over at the prince. Kisumi became a bit nervous, and breaking out in sweat. Nagisa turned to the red head. "Man, this just keeps getting more and more amusing. I'm hoping that this princess doesn't wake, and that prince gets beat up by the children." He started to giggle to himself.

Rei shook his head, and looked over at the red head. "Rin-san... when he said evil Queen, you don't think..."

Ruby eyes became distant, staring at nothing in particular. "I heard... that old hag somehow wormed her way into a kingdom, and became Queen... Unbelievable, right? I don't know what she did to this princess, or why, but I do have a feeling that old hag was involved in this." Rin murmured. The blue haired princess frowned, tightly clenching a fist to his side.

"Alright!" All attention went back to the one child that seemed to be the leader of the group. She looked up at the prince, pointing at him. "You can kiss Mako-chan. And if Mako-chan doesn't wake up, like you say would happen, then we get to beat you up and toss you to the dead lands of the Wonderlands." The leader proposed.

Kisumi flinched. "F-fine..." He sighed in defeat.

Nagisa hummed. "Oh, so we're close to that part of the Wonderlands." He mused to himself.

The little people all walked up to the glass coffin, and opened it. The new comers were all in awe, seeing a long figure, lying still in the beautifully crafted resting place for the princess. The princess was dressed all in white, that was embroidered with silver glossy thread, and clear, sparkling crystals intricately sown on to it. They saw that the princess had short, light brown hair, that had a sheen of green in the light, and on top of the princess's head was a silver tiara.

Nagisa grabbed Rei's hand. "Oooo, let's have a closer look!" He dragged the taller boy into the field, and towards where the princess lay. Rin rubbed the back of his head, and followed in a slower pace behind his younger companions. He suddenly stopped when he felt eyes watching him. He looked up to find deep blue eyes locked on to him. There was that burning sensation again that caused the red head to feel confused and then irritated. He frowned, and tore his gaze away from the raven haired boy, coming up behind the blond and blue haired cross-dressers.

Rin peered into the coffin, and recognized the sharp angles of a male the princess had. The male princess had broad shoulders, and looked to be taller than Rei and himself. But the princess still looked beautiful, even as he slept. Ruby eyes slowly widened, as familiarity came to him. "That's-"

Kisumi came up to the side of the coffin, and knelt down. The seven children, plus Nagisa and Rei, all leaned dangerously close, carefully watching the prince. The prince felt his lips turn to a frown, and he turned to the suffocating audience crowding around him. "Would you guys mind? A kiss is something special, and I don't think I can do it with all of you breathing down my back. Give a guy some space to build up the moment, can't you? This could be my chance to build a beautiful future with this sleeping maiden."

Nagisa groaned with disappointment, with the children mimicking the tune and emotion from the blond. At that moment, Nagisa grabbed hold of Rin, from behind him, to help him straighten up. But the blond seemed to tug down too hard, causing the red head to lose his balance. Nagisa was pushed into Rei, who in turn lost his balance and knocked down Kisumi from his place. All the children fell back from the impact and lost of balance. Through it all, the silent raven haired boy stepped back, to avoid being pulled in the clatter. With a soft shake of his head, he tore his eyes away from the pile of people, and raised his gaze. Ocean blue eyes widened, and found the red head on top of the princess in white, lips locked together.

There were several gasps and a loud whistle of amusement. Rin widened his ruby eyes, and his face exploded in red. He leaped away, somehow a few feet away from the coffin and the crowd. Kisumi's mouth was gaping wide, while Rei was blushing, out of second hand embarrassment for his red haired companion. But then there was a twinge of unknown emotion bubbling in the blue haired princess, which he quickly shook away. Nagisa was wiggling his brows in a suggestive manner, with a big amused grin, and he gave out a few teasing catcalls. The seven little children were giggling and blushing, while whispering among each other at what they just witnessed.

"Oh come on! You're no fair Rin! You took another princess's kiss from me again!" Kisumi cried childishly.

"Shut up, idiot! It's not my fault this time either!" The red head shouted, vigorously rubbing his burning lips. He fell to his hands and knees, glaring at the grass below him. Something in his chest was burning, and his vision was blurring with tears. "I can't believe... so embarrassing... stupid pink haired prince..." He muttered darkly, with a small hitch in his breath.

Nagisa approached the red head, patting the older teen's back. "There, there, Rin-chan. It's nothing to cry about." The blond ignored the hiss of the red head that denied crying. "It couldn't have been so bad, right?" The blond tried to console. "It's not like this princess was your first kiss. Which brings me to wonder who is this other princess you stole the kiss from before?" He nudged his elbow on the red head's side. "Come on, sharing is caring. Tell lil' old Nagisa about it."

"Him!" Kisumi pointed at the blue haired teen. "He stole my first chance with him!"

Rei blinked, and then blushed brightly. He started to wave his hands around. "Wait! No! Y-you're mistaken!" He looked around, seeing all the eyes upon him. "Surely you don't believe _I _am a princess!" He started to laugh out loud, getting nervous. "And Rin-san wouldn't... he's not like that... he-" The blue haired male felt tears prickling in his eyes.

"Oh my gosh! Rei-chan you're a horrible liar!" Nagisa exclaimed, jumping up and nearly tackling the blue haired teen. "And you're a princess! No way! What's this? Are you jealous that Rin-chan kissed another princess!? You are!" Rei squeaked from the accusation. "But we kissed, didn't we? I mean, compared to Rin-chan and I, which one was-"

Hand quickly pressed against the blond's lips, as the blue haired princess was bright red in the face. "Nagisa-kun!" He cried.

At one side, the red head was still on the floor, wallowing in his own little world. At another, the self-proclaimed prince with shining armor was crying and whining about not being able to kiss a princess. To the other side, the blonde male in pink was poking fun of the bespectacled blue haired male, that was trying to defend himself while being flustered. Watching it all were several children with fake beards, staring between each scene with wide eyes, as if it were all entertainment for them. Silently sighing, the raven haired boy tore his attention away from the comical spectacle, and gazed over the forgotten sleeping princess in a glass coffin.

Slowly blue eyes widened, as the princess in white started to rouse. Something stirred in the raven's chest, and he quickly walked over to the figure in the coffin. He knelt down at the side, and watched as the brunette slowly fluttered his eyes open, revealing gentle emerald eyes. Groaning, the brunette slowly turned his head, and a beautiful kind smile slowly formed on the princess's lips. "Haru." The brunette whispered, in a scratchy voice, as if it wasn't used for a while.

The raven blinked, and then a small smile formed. He reached out, caressing the back of his hand over the brunette's cheek. The noisy background suddenly seemed to have stopped. The silent raven looked over his shoulder, and saw all attention turned to his direction. All of a sudden, several pairs of eyes glistened with tears, and the seven children all leaped over to the glass coffin, crying out, "Mako-chan!"

The brunette struggled to sit up, laughing and trying to ease the seven children piling on top of him. "Everyone, what's wrong? Don't cry. I'm okay." The princess in white calmly reassured, while reaching out and patting each little capped heads. He blinked his emerald green eyes, and looked at his surroundings in surprise, suddenly processing the situation he currently was in. "Eh? What's this? Why am I in here? What happened?" He looked down at his dress. He blushed. "Huh?"

The four outsiders just watched the whole scene before them, forgetting what just happened moments ago that resulted in the said to be dead princess from being alive. Three pairs of eyes glanced at one another, with questioning looks. A pair of ruby eyes became glazed, as if distantly watching a melancholy scene. Then they hardened, and a frown slowly formed upon the owner of those intense red eyes. Hand tightened into clenching fists.

* * *

"Don't worry everyone, I'll be fine, especially with these guys here." Kind green eyes warmly watched over the seven children with obviously fake beards.

"You promise, Mako-chan?" A female questioned carefully.

"Remember to not take things from strangers again, Mako-chan!" One male warned.

The brunette laughed nervously, with a tiny blush upon his cheeks. "I promise." Then he waved his hand. "Off you guys go, and work hard everyone. I'll still be here with Haru." He reassured them. Then the seven children picked up pickaxes and marched off, following a dirt path into the forest. When they were no longer in view, the tall brunette had to bend down low, at his waist, in order to go inside the small house.

Just as quaint as the outside, the inside of the house was furnished and cleaned, all made out of wood. The ceiling barely touched the head of the tall brunette. The princess looked around, and saw Nagisa, Rei and Kisumi sitting around the small table, with empty plates from their morning meal. He spotted his silent raven haired friend sitting on the stairs, staring up at the round mosaic window by the staircase. Then sitting at an alcove by the door was Rin, staring out the window to the outside. A small warmth bubbled in the brunette, and he unconsciously reached up his hand, brushing softly his fingertips over his lips. He tore his gaze away from the red head, and walked in further into the house. "The dwarfs went off to work, and won't be back until sun down." The brunette spoke up.

Nagisa perked, and slightly tilted his head. "Where do they work? What do they do, Mako-chan?" He wondered.

The brunette flushed. "Please, just Makoto is fine. And they work at the mines found close to the coast to the west from here." He replied.

Kisumi, still feeling like a sore loser at a game, sighed, and leaned his cheek against his knuckles, elbow on top of the wooden table. "Mind telling us what you did to get in the bad side of a dark fairy and become cursed?" The prince questioned, asking the one thing both Rei and Rin wanted to also know.

Makoto bowed his head, and walked up to a small arm chair, close to the fireplace and alcove, where the red haired boy sat. "That dark fairy... or the 'Evil Queen'... is my step-mother." He replied, sullenly.

Rei and Rin shot their heads up towards the brunette, with wide eyes. Nagisa gasped out loud. Makoto slowly sat down on the arm chair, and folded his fingers together, on top of his lap. "I... I didn't tell the dwarfs or Haru, I mean Haruka, this..." He carefully glanced up at the raven haired boy, who was sitting on the stairs and staring at the brunette with intense blue eyes. "One day, after my father died..." His fingers tightly clutched on to each other. "The Queen ordered for my assassination." The blond boy gasped again.

"The one that was supposed to kill me... pitied me, and told me to run away, never to come back, as long as that woman was Queen of my father's kingdom..." Makoto bowed his head, but a small smile formed on his lips. "I stumbled into this place, and the dwarfs took me in." He raised his chin, looking over at the raven haired teen. "Haru, I mean Haruka, was living here with the dwarfs before me. But we all lived peacefully here, it was a better home than in the Kingdom..."

Then Makoto's smile fell. "However... she somehow found out I was staying here. She either sent people after me, or she was in a disguise, but they came to this house, offering gifts... which I was foolish enough to accept." He gave a strained smile, and nervously scratched his cheek. "Those items were enchanted to some how kill me, but the dwarfs and Haruka would come home in time to save me from those things. However, the last thing given was a poisoned apple... and... yeah..."

"You were cursed to an eternal sleep." Murmured Rei, as he adjusted his glasses.

"Yes." Makoto nodded.

A heavy silence came upon the room. There was a loud sigh, and all eyes went towards the red head male. Rin raked his fingers through his hair, and then looked at the brunette princess. "And so, what will you do now?" He questioned.

Makoto blinked. "What do you mean?"

The red head adjusted his sitting position, with both feet planted on the ground, and his weight placed on his elbows, leaning over his thighs. He looked straight up into emerald green eyes. "Are you going to keep staying here, hiding from that step-mother of yours, where she knows your exact location? Or are you going to do something to get back your father's kingdom from that woman?" Rin asked directly, his expression serious and calm. "Honestly, you're like a sitting duck, waiting to be shot at, and you might as well put on targets on those dwarfs and your friend if you stay here any longer."

Makoto widened his eyes, fear overcoming him. He bowed his head, and bit his lower lip. The brunette suddenly fell into an uncomfortable silence, being placed on the spot, but he understood what the shorter male was asking of him. "I..."

"Rin-chan..." Nagisa called out, as a warning, feeling a tension building.

With a loud sigh, Rin stood up from his spot, and headed to the door. "I'm going to be outside for a while. I need some air." He grumbled, before ducking his head, and leaving the vicinity.

Nagisa sighed, and give a small whine. "That Rin-chan, always so serious and straight to the point. I wonder what's got his panties in a bunch." He muttered with a small pout.

Rei's gaze lowered, and he started to fiddle around with a fold on his skirt. "Rin-san... is also a victim of that dark fairy, and gets mad and frustrated when she involves more and more people in her evil deeds." The blue haired princess replied.

"Like you too, Rei-chan?" The blond leaned over the table, his chin resting on his hands, while closely watching the blue haired teen. "You're a princess right? And you've been cursed too, but was saved by Rin-chan, yeah?"

"Correct." The blue haired princess confirmed. "I was struck by her curse, fell into an eternal slumber. As I slept away... that dark fairy... she..." Violet eyes glared hard at an invisible figure found at the fold of his skirt.

"Destroyed the Kingdom of Aurore, and massacred all the people of the court, especially the King and Queen." Kisumi continued. Three pairs of eyes quickly turned to the prince, with shock at the news, then watched the bowed head of the blue haired princess. The prince sighed, raking his fingers through his peach colored hair. "That woman has been busy over the years, causing pain and suffering all around, it seems." The prince straightened his back, and then got up from his seat. "Whatever that dark fairy did to Rin-chan is driving his desire to chase that woman all over the world... and possibly kill her..." All pairs of eyes turned to the prince again, the words dawning upon them about the red head.

Kisumi walked towards the door. "Well, I have to go find me another princess that's awaiting for a kiss from a prince to break a curse." He adjusted his metal arm guards.

Nagisa bounced in his seat, grinning widely. "Really? Why do you need to go out of your way to save some princess and kiss her, oh gallant prince?" The blonde wondered, innocently.

"How about you pay me with a kiss, and I might tell you." The peach haired teen winked. Nagisa blinked, and giggled. Kisumi turned to the brunette, and approached him. He threw back his cape, and knelt down on one knee in front of him. He took Makoto's hand, and kissed it. The brunette princess became flustered. "I thank you, dear princess, for allowing me to rest up here in this nice house. I would also like for you to extend my gratitude to those dear dwarfs of yours as well." Then he stood up, and walked to the door. "Until next time." Then he was out the door, after a curt two finger salute.

Nagisa hurried to the window, and watched as the prince was talking, in a flirting manner, to the red haired boy in a red skirt. Rin had a rapier in his hand, looking as if he was practicing with it earlier, but now waving it around threateningly, at the prince. "Oh, I didn't know Rin-chan knew how to fight with a sword." The blond mused.

"It is actually a rapier, and Rin-san is very proficient with it, and strong." Rei replied, adjusting his glasses. "He was able to drive off bandits when we were traveling into the Wonderlands from my home."

The blond turned around, and tilted his head. "How come Rin-chan didn't use that when the Card Soldiers appeared and surrounded us?"

"I would be too shocked to even fight back when faced with such absurdities in the Wonderlands, as well." The blue haired princess replied. "And I do not think he was even given a chance, especially when we fell through that hole that suddenly appeared below us." He pointed out.

Makoto watched the two, and smiled softly. "You three... must have traveled a long way together." He carefully spoke out.

Nagisa turned to the brunette and shook his head. "Ah, no, I just met Rei-chan and Rin-chan in the Wonderlands a few days back."

"And Rin-san recently broke my curse in my parents' kingdom, and we traveled to the Wonderlands together, following rumors of the dark fairy heading north." Rei replied. "Rin-san told me that he's been looking for the dark fairy for nearly five years."

Nagisa and Makoto widened their eyes in shock. "Five years?" The brunette murmured.

Rei nodded. "The reason why, he's never told me, and is tight lipped about it."

It became quiet for a moment, until it was broken by the blond. "Oh, and what's the story behind the mysterious and quiet Haru-chan?" Nagisa brought up. They all turned their heads, but the spot they last saw the raven haired teen was empty.

* * *

A swift lunge forward, and then a sweep to the side. Leaping high, and then a back flip, before a hard thrust forward. A glimpse of blue, and the red head became distracted from his concentration. Rin turned around and spotted the silent raven haired teen, with a light blue cloak over his shoulders. The red head lowed his rapier, and his expression fell. When there was no reaction coming from the other boy, he tisked, and rubbed the back of his head. The rapier in his other hand seemed to have disappeared into thin air. "What do you want?" Rin questioned out loud.

Only silence was his answer. Huffing in irritation, the red head crossed his arms, and narrowed his eyes at the raven. "What? Are you mute?" He questioned a bit too harshly.

The raven took a step forward, expression still apathetic. Rin blinked his eyes, and suddenly became nervous when the silent raven kept approaching him. "What are you doing?" He carefully asked, and then froze in place when the raven stood directly in front of him. The boy, as Rin recalled Makoto calling him, Haruka, just stared directly into his ruby eyes. After a few moments, a hand slipped out from the folds of the cloak, and reached out towards the red head. Rin blinked several more times, and then moved his head back, slightly out of reach from Haruka's finger tips. "You..."

Something was pulled out from his hair, and Rin looked at the small twig that the raven was holding. The red head blinked several times, and suddenly fought hard to push down the rising heat towards his cheeks. He furrowed his brows, his mouth slightly agape. Something glittered in those blue eyes, before Haruka quickly retracted his hand back behind his cloak, and turning around towards the small house.

The doors opened, and Makoto, Nagisa and Rei came out. "Haru?" The brunette questioned, and the raven ducked back inside the small house. Rin was left standing at the same spot, with a swirl of emotions nearly drowning him and confusing him more. '_What the heck!?_'

"Help!"

Four heads turned at the faint call from a distance. Coming from the path to the beaches, three dwarfs appeared, running quickly towards the house. They were all in distress, and Makoto quickly walked up to the three. "Ren, Hayato, Yuuta, what's wrong? Where are the others?" The brunette crouched down, just as the three jumped him, wrapping their arms at any part of the tall princess they could reach.

"It's horrible!" One cried.

"We were attacked!" Another cried. "We escaped thanks to Ran."

"Mako-chan, please help us! The others were left behind and taken!"

Worry and attentive, the brunette frowned. "Attacked? By who?" Makoto asked.

"We don't know, but some strange people."

"They look like giant playing-cards with arms and legs! They even have real sharp pointy spears!"

Foot steps were heard running. Makoto looked up to see his three new guests running off towards the direction the three dwarfs just came from. "Wait!" He called out to them.

* * *

Rin and his two younger companions raced towards the rocky hills. As they ran following the trail, they saw the ocean, knowing they were close to the cliffs that they've first arrived in. As they reached the mine entrance, they quickly hid behind the giant stones, assessing the situation in the area. Rin had his back pressed against a large stone, while looking over. Rei was beside the older teen, while Nagisa was crouched down on the floor in front of them, panting to catch his breath.

Red eyes carefully peered past their hiding place. There were the four other dwarfs, tied up back to back, being threatened by the pointy ends of the spears that the Card Soldiers held at them. Two dwarfs were crying, the leader was glaring hard at their captors, while the last one was trying to calm down the other two. Rin retreated, and leaned the back of his head against the stone.

"What's the situation, boss?" Nagisa whispered, looking up at the red head.

Rin frowned, but raised a brow at the title the blond gave him. "The dwarfs are tied up, surrounded by the Card Soldiers. I didn't see anyone else around, though. So I'm not sure if there is anyone other than the Card Soldiers."

Rei raised his glasses. "I am sure, assuming that there are only the Card Soldiers, we can easily incapacitate them, if we are to head in there. But..."

The blond looked up at the bespectacled princess, tilting his head slightly to one side. "But?"

"Not seeing the whole picture, and being caught off guard wouldn't be the best situation to land ourselves in. We could place harm on those dwarfs, and our selves. There are many various outcomes that could not go our way if we all just rush in there." The blue haired male explained.

Nagisa sighed, and jumped up on his two feet from the ground. "Aw, Rei-chan, don't be so negative. You just need to think positively." He was smiling widely. "What happens, happens. We just have to figure out how to get out of it when it comes." Rei sighed, shaking his head, about to retort, but then Rin lifted his hand, silencing the two.

"Just follow what I say, and things may go smoothly, alright?" He murmured, while taking one last look over. Nagisa saluted, with a determined look. Rei adjusted his glasses.

* * *

From a distance, the brunette princess could see the rock formations, leading to the mining cave. Makoto was panting from the running to catch up with Rin and his two companions. To the side, he saw a glimpse of the ocean, and the afternoon sun hours away from setting. He left the three other dwarfs back at the cabin with Haruka, promising that he'll be fine, reassuring that their guests were stronger than they look, especially a certain red hooded male.

Earlier, Makoto had a small disagreement with his raven haired friend, about going there alone. It looked more like a one-sided thing, as one didn't speak back. But the brunette has spent enough time with the estrange raven to understand him, without hearing any words spoken from his lips. The dwarfs praised Makoto for his ability to understand the boy, when all they could somehow get from him was his name. Then it was all guesses and assumptions from the little people, until Makoto stumbled in to their humble home. The brunette pressed his lips into a line, his eyes set in front with a determined and courageous expression. "I'm sorry, Haru, but... I can't run away all the time. If... if it's for friends, then I'll do it. I'll fight back to save them... protect them." He murmured to himself, recalling the things the red head said to him hours before in the little cabin. '_And... for some reason... I can't just leave them alone... especially Rin... like with you, Haru._'

A loud snapping sound from behind caused the brunette to squeak and leap into the side bushes. Makoto shakily looked behind, and sighed out loud in relief. "Haru!" He pressed a hand over his racing heart against his chest. "Don't do that!"

The raven haired boy walked up to the tall brunette, with the same indifferent expression. He bowed his head slightly. Makoto smiled. "It's okay, but what are you doing here? You were supposed to stay with the others back in the cabin!" He slightly scolded.

Haruka slightly inclined his head to the side, with a few blinks of his blue eyes. The brunette bowed his head, feeling a bit sullen. "I know, I was stupid to go alone, but I had faith that Rin, Nagisa and Rei would be fine. And I wanted to help the other dwarfs. Those three didn't have any business to go save them, when they just met, but they went, because... they're brave, unlike me..."

The silent raven haired boy reached out his hand, and placed it on the taller male's shoulder. Makoto slowly looked up, and looked into those deep blue eyes. Then his emerald eyes shined, and a smile grew on the brunette's lips. "Let's go?" He murmured. Then his partner nodded, and they quickly and quietly headed to the mining entrance.

* * *

A small sound caused the Card Soldiers and the four dwarfs to quickly turn their heads, and found a figure slowly walking towards them. The dwarfs gasped and widened their eyes, recognizing the person with a red hooded cloak, and red short skirt. The soldiers tensed, as they raised their weapons higher, and guarded. The soldiers looked to have a different suit, from the last time the red headed boy encountered them. They had red diamonds, and were numbered two to ten.

"Halt! Who goes there?" Number Ten demanded in a deep tone. Hands raised up, as if surrendering, the red head came to a stop, a few feet away from the soldiers and tied up dwarfs.

Number Five slightly moved closer to Number Ten, raising a hand, and not so quietly whispering behind it, "Sir, it's one of the accomplices of Alice." Number Five took out a paper, which had an almost accurate drawing of the red cloaked boy.

Number Ten raised his spear, pointing threateningly at the red head. "Where is Alice?" He demanded.

"How about, you release those kids, and I might tell you where he is." Rin spoke out, no emotion betraying his passive expression.

"We're not kids!" The female dwarf leader shouted, but then shut up quickly when the tip of a spear was directed at her face. She sharply turned her head and glared at the soldier. Rin narrowed his eyes.

"You tell us where Alice is, then we'll release them." Number Ten commanded.

There was a sigh, and the red head dropped his arms to his side. The soldiers tensed, becoming wary of the lone male. "I did ask, but you leave me no choice but to use force." In a fluid motion, the red head went into a stance, and in his hand appeared a shining rapier. The little dwarfs widened their eyes at the weapon, loudly voicing their awe.

"Get him!" Number Ten shouted, pointing at the red head.

Weapons clashed, and the red head was moving around with nimble grace, brightening the eyes of the dwarfs that watched. Hope came to them when they saw that Rin had the upper hand, slicing two of the soldiers into shreds, in just a blink of an eye. The other soldiers backed away, apprehensive to attack, after seeing two of their comrades cut down with ease.

"What are you doing? Don't stand there! Get him!" Number Ten demanded. When the others were hesitant to move, the commander charged forward, and the others followed. Though outnumbered, Rin fought back, and pretty well on his own.

Without notice, two figures moved through the shadows and around the big stones. One dwarf turned her head away, and saw the two recognizable cross-dressers. She gasped, just as the blond and blue head quietly came up to them. Nagisa placed a finger on his lips, silencing the dwarfs, to not catch the attention of their captors. The other dwarfs, hearing and feeling the approach of the two, all turned and brightened. Rei and Nagisa hurried to untie the ropes, and then lead them to their escape route.

One soldier turned around, and became alarmed, spotting their escaping hostages. "Ten! The dwarfs!" Then Number Three was easily cut down into half, right down the center.

Number Ten turned around, and became angry. He lashed out at the red head, and ran for the dwarfs and the ones that set them free. "Alice!" The commanding solider shouted, having recognized the blond male. He pulled two others with him to chase the blond and the dwarfs.

Nagisa jumped, and looked over his shoulder. "Come on, time to get out of here, fast!"

Suddenly, the rocks seemed to tremble, and everyone seemed to have stopped in their place. They all raised their heads, and saw big stones rolling down from above. Number Ten and the two other soldiers weren't quick enough to dodge, and were trampled by the pile of large stones. Nagisa, Rei and the dwarfs all looked up, and widened their eyes at the two familiar people. "Mako-chan!" The dwarfs cried out.

Makoto smiled brightly, waving at his dear friends. "You're okay, Ran, Yuna, Yuko, Syo?" He asked them. The four dwarfs all nodded, grinning widely at their dear princess.

Haruka, standing beside the brunette, was watching the fight between the red head and the two remaining card soldiers. Rin leaped up high, and twisted in the air above the two soldiers, before landing and sweeping his rapier across from behind them. The last of the Card Soldiers shredded to pieces, like their other comrades. All the while, a pair of blue eyes glistened at the scene. A hand dropped softly on to the raven's shoulder. Haruka turned his head to his partner, and saw the big smile from the brunette. "See, there is nothing to worry about with Rin." Makoto spoke, reassuringly. Haruka nodded, and the two turned around to get down to meet with the others.

"Rin-san!" "Rin-chan!" The red head pulled back his hood, and flicked his wrist as his rapier disappeared. Rin turned around, and was attacked by a mass of yellow and pink. The red head winced a bit, and looked down at the crown of golden hair. He reached a hand and patted the head. "Oi, Nagisa!" Then he looked up and saw the shining violet eyes from the bespectacled princess.

"Rin-san, as usual, you were amazing, and your swordsmanship was beautiful." Rei praised, smiling widely. The red head tried hard to hide his blush.

Nagisa rubbed his head on the red head's chest. "I wasn't worried one bit." Then the red head was able to pry the blond off of him. Nagisa looked up and smiled widely. "We did it! We saved the day!" He cheered.

Then Rin was toppled over, when four little people tackled him. The red head struggled to keep himself sitting up, as he was ambushed by the gratitude from the dwarfs, and tight hugs. "Hey, calm down. I just did what was right, and it was just thanks for allowing us to stay at your place." He reasoned, while prying them off of him.

There was a kind laugh, and Rin looked over to see Makoto and Haruka approaching them. The brunette slightly bent down. "Everyone, I think Rin has had enough thanks and hugs from you." The four awed in disappointment, and all got up. Then they went to cling on to Haruka and Makoto. The tall brunette smiled down at the red head, and offered out his hand to him.

Rin blinked, looked at the hand, then slowly took it. "You came." He was helped up to stand. The red head muttered a thanks, and dusted his skirt.

"Well, we couldn't let you be the only ones saving our friends." The brunette replied, the turned around to the two younger males. "You guys, thanks for going out of your way to save them." Makoto said, with gratitude.

Nagisa waved a hand, dismissing it. "It's no problem... plus, they were wrongly pulled into a problem that shouldn't have involved them."

Rei frowned, and crossed his arms. "What are soldiers of the Heart Kingdom doing here, anyways?" He questioned. "They're out of their territory, and from my guess, since we're close to the sea, we're in the free boarders between the Land of Butterflies and the Wonderlands. That's way past the Kingdom of Hearts."

Rin looked at the blond. "Honestly, just how much trouble are you in, in the Heart Kingdom?" He grumbled. Nagisa bowed his head, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Enough trouble for the order of your execution, dear Alice." A deep voice spoke.

The group all sharply turned their heads, and saw a very tall and lanky man, standing on top of a stone. He was very pale, with a long face, long black hair to his shoulders, and a black eye patch on his right with a red heart etched on it. He was all in black, with black armor.

Nagisa gasped, and ducked behind Rin. "It's the Knave of Hearts." He whispered. The red head was about to scold the blond, but then stopped when he felt the hands clutching on to his back, trembling. Rin frowned, and looked up, glaring at the man.

"By orders of the Red Queen of the Kingdom of Hearts, we are to take Alice and his accomplices to the castle, to face execution without trial." The man spoke in a strange accent, and slurred some of his words. With practiced grace, the man jumped off of the rock, landing with ease. "Come now, or you'll be forced."

Rin scowled, and gently pushed back Nagisa. Rei blinked, and quickly turned his head to the red head. "Rin-san, you can't possibly be thinking of-"

"Get out of here." The red head steadily said, as he stepped forward. "All of you, get out of here. I'll take care of him."

The blond shook his head, and grabbed the back of the red head's cloak. "No, Rin-chan! You can't! The Knave of Hearts is the most loyal and strongest soldier of the Red Queen. He's known to be one of the best swordsmen in all of the country!" Nagisa cried.

"Don't worry." Rin carefully slipped his cloak from the blond's grasp, and pushed him, by his shoulder, onto Haruka, who was close by. "I'll distract him long enough for you guys to get out of here, and to somewhere safe."

Makoto widened his eyes, anxious and afraid for the red head. "Wait, but Rin-"

"Go now!" He shouted, and walked up to the black knight. Rin went into a stance, and his rapier appeared in his hand. His ruby eyes narrowed, watching his opponent.

The Knave of Hearts smirked, and pulled out his sword from the scabbard tied to his side. "You have a nice stance." The man commented, twirling his sword in his hand. "You don't normally see that kind of stance among the common folk. It looks more for nobles or royals coming from the northern kingdoms." The most loyal knight of the Red Queen gracefully went into a stance, different from the red head's. "However, everyone knows which weapon is superior to the other."

"We'll have to see." From the corner of his eyes, he saw the group still there. He scowled. "What the hell are you waiting for, get out of here, now!"

They all flinched. Haruka reached out his hand, and tugged on to the wrist of the tall brunette. Makoto bit his lower lip, and then turned around, ushering the curious dwarfs. Haruka led the way, with the four little people rushing behind. The tall princess turned around, and looked at the two younger males. "Nagisa, Rei, come on!" He called out. The two were hesitant, looking one last time behind them at the red head, then turned around to follow after the tall brunette.

Swords clashed, and both moved swiftly. When the Knave of Hearts leaped away, with the tip of Rin's blade nearly touching his face, the man countered back, and cut the side of the young male. Rin leaped back, and hissed in pain. The man looked up, seeing as the group was fleeing. "You won't escape that easily." With thumb and middle fingers to his lips, the man loudly whistled.

From a distance, there was a loud shrill. The four males with the four dwarfs, heading towards the forest, all craned their necks at the sound. There was a shadow that glided over the last three boys. Nagisa gritted his teeth, recognizing the sound. "Oh no, it's a Jubjub Bird." He cursed, picking up speed. "We need to hide!" He shouted.

Rei looked at the blond. "A what, now?"

There was a strange whistling sound, that was getting louder and louder, as if it was coming closer to them. It caused an alarming expression on the blond male, and he shouted out, "Everyone, duck!" Just at the warning, everyone did as they were told, and fell to the floor. Rei peeked up, just as a giant bird flew over head, missing them by a hair. The blue haired princess shot his head up, and gaped at the never before seen animal in his life.

It looked like a brightly colored giant vulture, with a very long neck, beak and scaly legs. Its claws were not inviting, and its wingspan were at least more than ten feet wide. If Rei had to also guess, if that animal were to stand beside him, it would be a towering seven feet in height. Judging by the panicking expression in his blond companion, that Jubjub Bird was not to be taken lightly. Somewhere in the back of Rei's mind, he wondered if all strange animals that are uncommon in the other lands were dangerous, coming from the Wonderlands. "Duck!" Everyone dove to the ground again.

"We need to head to the trees!" Rei shouted. He raised his head and saw Makoto and Haruka helping the little dwarfs up, and ushering them to safety. Then the boy quickly got up, and ran after his blond companion.

"This is really bad." Nagisa muttered, dodging the rocks embedded on the ground. "I really hope Rin-chan will be okay."

"We just have to trust in his abilities. He'll come to us." The blue haired boy said reassuringly, with a smile. They saw the thick trees of the forest, Makoto, Haruka and the dwarfs already gone from sight. From behind they heard the same loud sound, which Rei already figured was like a warning sound, coming from the giant bird of prey.

The two made a dive, directed towards the trees. As if in slow motion, Rei looked over his shoulder, and his breath caught in his throat. The claws of the Jubjub mere centimeters from reaching them. Then it happened quickly, both cross-dressers were caught, in the strong vice grip of the bird's claws. The two cried out in shock and panic, struggling to break free.

There was a mocking laugh, and the two looked over and saw the Knave of Hearts. Their hearts fell when their brave companion was nowhere in sight, and the dark knight looking without a scratch on him. He was grinning widely, and reached up towards the Jubjub bird. "Looks like we caught the prey." The man mused, then easily jumped on to the back of the bird. "The Red Queen would be most pleased." The bird flapped its giant wings, clouds of dust building up and rolling from beneath it.

At a distance, the two heard a battle cry. Their attention spotted a red head dashing quickly towards them. Rin was leaping from one big rock, to another, gaining height towards the giant bird. "Rin-san!" "Rin-chan!" The two cried out. The red head glared hard, and with his rapier, swept his blade across in one swift motion.

The Jubjub bird cried out in pain, and its vice grip loosened. Nagisa and Rei were freed, and released into the air. They both started to fall, but then a strong grip grabbed the upper arm of Rei, while the blond fell onto the red head. "No you don't!"

The blue haired princess looked up, seeing the Knave of Hearts, holding tightly to him, while keeping a grip on the Jubjub Bird it was riding on. The boy looked down, and saw that his friends were getting farther and farther as the bird slowly rose higher. Rin and Nagisa were still rousing from the impact, on the floor. Rei felt his chest burn, and he threw out his hand towards them. "Nagisa-kun! Rin-san!"

The blond shook his head, and quickly looked up. Dark pink eyes widened, and pupils shrank. Nagisa threw his hand out to the sky. "REI-CHAN"

Rin's heart constricted, and he quickly got up, running. He followed the bird, as it was flying back towards the mine entrance and rocky formations. The red head was jumping higher up the slope of the hill. When he reached the peak, he skidded to a stop at the edge, preventing from falling into the deep gorge. Rin threw his hand out, reaching out, finger tips centimeters away from the hem of Rei's skirt. "REI!"

**End Chapter 4**

* * *

**AN: **I did it again! Another cliffhanger! Yay!

Just to clarify, the final pair will be HaruRin. I just like dropping hints of Everyone x Rin here and there, because it's fun. You can take it however you want, one-sided, broships, whatever. But I don't mind you suggesting side pairings. Makoto and Haruka are going to have that canon closeness, because you can't take that away. So with Nagisa and Rei, and later on, Sousuke and Rin. Who needs boundaries between all these guys, anyway? But no romantic hints will come between any of them, except between Haruka and Rin, and maybe others, if you ask of it. So, there you have it.

All names used were found from the Free! Wiki sight. They're real characters apparently. Everyone in this story that have names are all going to be from cannon Free! So I might pick up names mentioned in the novels too. Let's see if you catch them. And also, the characters from the Alice in Wonderland series are not made up either, except for their description, because apparently it was never described in the original stories.

One day, I'll draw a lame map of the whole made up magical country.


	5. Across the Chessboard

**R**arely told, there were twin peasant girls that were adopted by a rich noble woman, after their mother, a servant, died. Though both had the same looks, one was kind and modest, while the other was vain and selfish. They grew up with the nicknames of White and Red, associated with the colors they were often seen wearing. Both were beautiful and many men flocked towards them, pining for their attention and affection, but one was gentle and welcoming, while the other sneered at anyone below her.

Through a faithful encounter, White was engaged to be married to a soon to be King of a kingdom, while Red was arranged to marry a swine of a noble man. One lived on happily, while the other was miserable and full of envy. Then the day came, when Red's husband died from an accident, leaving the woman a widow with two daughters. Her twin offered help and her condolence, but Red refused and turned away angrily.

Not long after, White finally gave birth to a beautiful child, and she died. The King grieved, and turned to Red to share their sorrow. But love sparked between, and the King remarried, giving a mother to his mother-less child. Then Red lived the life she was always envious of from her dead twin sister.

When the King died of a sickness, Red took over as ruler of the whole kingdom, and became the most happy with all the power. Showered with gifts after the coronation, Red received a unique music box. When she privately opened it, it was on that day when an unfortunate encounter occurred. Darkness awakened, and granted the woman powers unimaginable. The whole Kingdom quaked with fear, but one 'pawn', once forgotten, was quickly moving across, threatening to take Red's crown she viciously and selfishly was clutching tightly to.

* * *

**Final Tale of All Time**

**Chapter Five**: _Across the Chessboard_

**By**: Kat Lee V

* * *

The tension in the room was very thick, that even the little dwarfs noticed, but never commented about. Makoto was silently tending to the wounds Rin received from his sword fight with the Knave of Hearts. Since they got back from the rocky area where the mine entrance was, both the red head and his blond companion, Nagisa, were silent, both holding their own emotions in their expressions. But one thing in common was that they were angry, and most of all worried. They just watched their friend get captured, and taken away right in front of their eyes. Makoto and Haruka had to drag both of them back to the cabin, so that they can heal their wounds. But both knew that the two wouldn't just sit around, as time ticked by. The brunette princess was especially aware of it, with the tenseness on the bare shoulders and back muscles of the red head in front of him.

Makoto pulled back, and gave a weak smile. "There, all done." He said softly, while cleaning up the little mess he made while giving first aid. He looked at his work, and saw the bandages wrapped all around the torso and left shoulder of the red head.

There was a tiny grumble of gratitude, before Rin quickly draped his red cloak over his half naked state. He had to be forced out of his shirt and skirt, and was given a spare pair of shorts to wear for the mean time. The dwarfs happily and forcefully took Rin's clothes to mend and wash. They admitted to loving sewing, hence the beautiful fancy handmade white gown they put on Makoto when they thought he was dead.

The brunette dared to glance over at the blond, who acted unlike the usually cheerful state, staring blankly ahead of him, still not over the shock of what just happened moments before. The blond was also forced out of his cute pink dress with a white frilly apron. He was given a spare over sized yellow night shirt, after being hand bathed by the eager dwarfs. The blond didn't seem to mind, or more like, he wasn't that much aware of his surroundings.

Makoto was pulled out of his recollection, and turned his head when the red head got up from his spot. "Rin..." He gently called out.

The red head gritted his teeth. "I can't stay here." He hissed.

Concern clouded emerald green eyes. "But you're injured. You need to rest." Makoto protested.

Rin sharply turned his head at the brunette, with glaring ruby eyes that glistened with another unknown emotion. "Every minute I waste staying here and not going after Rei, is every minute that he'll be in danger of a fast execution from that damn Red Queen." The red head loudly exhaled in frustration, clenching a hand on to the fringes over his forehead. "You don't understand, Rei could be scared, or worse tortured. He just freakin woke up from a stupid year long sleeping curse! And we made a promise-"

Makoto quickly got up, and placed calming hands on to the red head's shoulders. The red head flinched, and jerked his head up at the brunette, with glaring eyes. "You can't go after him with the state you're in. I know you're worried, and I am too. But, Rin, you're injured, and you can't do anything in that kind of state. You'll only put yourself and Rei more in danger." The brunette spoke a bit more sternly, his eyes glistening with understanding, and hope that the red head also understood.

For a short while, the two stood there, staring into each other's eyes, not backing down. Then the silence was broken, as the blond male spoke up. "Rei... Rei has until sundown tomorrow." Nagisa's voice was small.

Rin blinked, and tore his eyes away from those smoldering emerald greens. He turned to the short blond, whose head was kept bowed down. The red head frowned, and slipped away from the big brunette's hands. "And you know this...?"

Slowly, Nagisa raised his head, and looked up at the red head. The red head saw the guilt and sorrow on the blond's usually bright and joyful expression. Nagisa rubbed his nose with the back of his forearm, then looked back up at the red head. "The Red Queen... it's too late for her to do anything. She has these set schedules. In the morning, she'll most likely see Rei. Then she'll announce for a public execution. Then messages would be sent out around lunch time to all the residents of the Heart Kingdom. By sundown... she always has these kind of public events starting by sundown." He said, with confidence and certainty in his tone.

The red head closed his eyes, and turned away from the blond, his back to him and the tall brunette. "I'm leaving by the break of dawn." Then he headed towards the makeshift bed in the alcove. He laid curled up to his good side, his back to the others, while facing the window. He pulled up the given blanket, and threw it over his shoulder. Both Makoto and Nagisa watched the red head, as he stopped moving around.

The brunette sighed softly, and turned to the blond. He gave a gentle smile, offering out his hand to the younger boy. "We have a long day tomorrow, and we need to wake up very early. Let's head to bed too, Nagisa." He whispered.

Magenta eyes blinked in surprise, looking up at the towering brunette princess. "You're coming too, Mako-chan?" Nagisa whispered, with a hint of surprise in his tone.

Makoto's expression show determination and conviction. "It's only fair, since you've helped my friends, I want to help you save yours." Then he smiled, causing the blond to feel a calmness.

The blond took the hand, and allowed the bigger male to pull him up. "You're a dear friend too, Mako-chan." Nagisa murmured, before heading up the stairs to his bed her was offered to sleep in.

Makoto bowed his head, after the blond disappeared from sight. He silently walked around, turning off lights, and then grabbed a candle in a holder. Emerald eyes glanced over at the figure sleeping at the alcove. Concern washed over Makoto, worried that the tall red head may not be comfortable sleeping in an almost tight space, but the red head assured he was fine, when he first stayed over the night in the cabin. For a while, his gaze lingered at the back, and curves of his shoulder, bathed in the moonlight shining through the window. The brunette shook his head, and forced himself to tear his gaze away.

When he began making his way up the stairs, he saw his silent dark haired friend, sitting at the top of the stairs, leaning his shoulder against the wall. Makoto carefully climbed the stairs, then stopped a few steps from the top floor. He reached out his hand, and gently nudged the raven haired boy. Crystal blue eyes slowly fluttered open, and looked directly into the brunette princess's eyes. Makoto smiled softly. "You were waiting for me?" He questioned in a whisper.

Those blue eye bore into the brunette's. Haruka reached out his hand, and firmly grabbed the bigger male's wrist, squeezing it slightly. Makoto blinked, and then bowed his head, smiling a bit bashfully. "I... I feel guilty for Rei's capture... even though Nagisa says it's all his fault... but... I want to go..." He looked up at the raven haired boy. "I can't sit around doing nothing, hiding all the time... like a coward..." He turned his hand, and held Haruka's hand in his own larger one. "I want to go with them, Haru, with Rin, Nagisa and Rei."

Makoto released the raven's hand, and leaned his shoulder against the same wall as Haruka's, facing the other boy. "If... if Rin and Rei can face her, even after all the horrible things she has done to them... then I should too... after all, she's my step-mother. I hope you understand." The brunette pushed off the wall, then walked around the raven haired teen. Makoto paused, not looking behind to check if Haruka moved or not. "I'll be leaving early with Rin and Nagisa. So we might not be able to see each other in the morning... so Haru... thank you for everything, and also I hope you somehow tell the dwarfs my thanks too." Then the brunette walked into his own given room, that he was temporarily sharing with Nagisa as well.

Deep blue eyes slowly opened, and looked up at the stain glass window, with the moonlight filtering through.

* * *

It was apparent that drowsiness was present on the pink wearing blonde, but Nagisa was battling the sleepiness away, as he led Rin and Makoto towards the boarders of Wonderland. The blond remembered that there was a hidden passageway through the ravine, that divided the Wonderlands from the Land of Butterflies.

Not much conversation went through the three as they were walking away from the cabin. Nagisa was barely waking up from his sleepiness. Rin was just silent, too focused in his personal mission, and Makoto was left in his own thoughts, feeling guilty for not saying anything to the occupants of the cabin that took him in since he ran away from his own kingdom. There were a few words that was spoken between them, but the rest of the way was mostly in silence, listening to the early birds singing in the trees.

Nagisa rubbed his left eye, as he stared a head, from the edge of the ravine. It was the same spot that they last saw of a certain blue haired princess. Across the big gap was the edge of the Wonderlands. As Nagisa mentioned earlier, they were staring at the dead lands of the Wonderlands. He explained to them last night that the dead lands were about an hour away from the castle of the Kingdom of Hearts. The blond yawned, and peered down the deep ravine, that looked very dark at the bottom. "We'll need to cross over to the other side somehow..." He muttered. "The secret entrance is on the other side of the trench wall."

Emerald green eyes tore away from the barren stretch of land ahead of them, and looked around the rocky area where they stood. "I... remember the dwarfs mentioned a bridge, one time, and to never cross it over to those lands of the north..." Makoto told.

Rin slowly released his breath through his nose, and then turned to the tall brunette. "Lead the way, then." He waved a hand, nonchalantly.

The three suddenly tensed when they heard a sound behind them. They all quickly turned around, and saw a familiar silent raven haired boy, standing with an indifferent expression. Makoto sighed out loud with relief, a hand on his chest. "Haru! What are you doing here?" Concern came to his eyes, as he came up to the raven haired boy.

Irritation bubbled within the red head, and he frowned deeply, watching the mute boy. Nagisa yawned loudly, and stretched his arms above his head. Makoto came in front of Haruka, looking straight into his deep blue eyes. "Haru, you followed us?"

The shorter male raised his chin, with his eyes glistening with a hidden emotion. The brunette blinked, and then slowly his emerald green eyes widened. "Wait... you want to come with us?" Makoto carefully asked. Haruka nodded.

Nagisa dropped his arms down, and turned to the pair. "Eh? Are you sure, Haru-chan? It'll be very dangerous. I'm still trying to convince Mako-chan to change his mind too."

The brunette sharply turned his head to the blond. "What? But I said I was going with you guys, and I already made up my mind." Makoto turned back to the raven haired boy. "But, Haru, you don't need to come with us. And like Nagisa said, it will be dangerous. Dealing with someone with magic is not easy, and you'll get badly hurt or worse."

Blue eyes glanced over at the red head, who had his arms crossed and staring off to the side. Haruka looked back up at his tall friend, and nodded his head, his eyes shining with conviction. Makoto bit his lower lip, hesitant in allowing his dear friend in joining in such a dangerous mission. There was a loud sigh, and the brunette turned around, looking at the red head.

"Just let him come with us." Rin grumbled, annoyed and impatient. He glared at the raven haired teen. "If he wants to come, then let him. He knows already what lies ahead, if he joins us. And everyone knows to not do anything unnecessary and stupid to put themselves in dangerous situations they know they can't handle." The last statement was especially directed to all three of them. Makoto bowed his head, and Haruka's eyes narrowed at the red head. Nagisa rubbed the back of his neck, and then looked off to the side.

"So, that bridge..." The blond spoke up, breaking the tense silence.

* * *

After the group found the hidden entrance at the walls of the ravine on the Wonderlands side, they walked through a strange tunnel, with floating furniture, that some were also embedded to the dirt walls. They ended up in front of a brightly colored door, and came out into the strange forest of the Wonderlands, that Rin remembered being in days before. Makoto and Haruka, haven't been in the strange yet ethereal environment, were entranced by the new lands they entered in. As they wandered deeper, Nagisa, now fully awake and full of energy, was telling about the Wonderlands.

It was before lunch time that Rin recognized that they stepped through the broken rusted gates of the crooked and colorful house. The red head turned to the blond, frowning. "And why are we here at your friend's house?" He still had that irritated edge in his tone. The whole time they were traveling, Rin was silent the whole time, with a brooding and dark aura around him, that everyone tried to avoid bringing up.

Nagisa ran around the table towards the crooked door entrance to the house. "There is something important I wanted to get, before we head to the castle. Also, I need some supplies and useful tools to bring when we infiltrate the castle." Then the blonde disappeared into the house.

Makoto looked around, with his mouth slightly gaping, as he looked around the area. Haruka approached the long and messy table with empty tea sets. Rin pulled down his hood, and raked his fingers through his hair, sighing out in frustration. Both the brunette princess and the raven haired boy turned their attention to the red head. Makoto lightly bit his lower lip, hesitating in approaching the red head.

Suddenly, ruby eyes widened, and the boy froze. Upon his cheeks were two warm and pale hands at each side of his face. To the side, Makoto choked on his breath at the sudden action from his silent raven haired friend. He was internally panicking, unsure what will happen, while worried at the outcome of the sudden action Haruka instigated. He just invaded the personal bubble of the already irritated and in a bad mood red head. Ruby eyes slowly narrowed, and glared icily. "What the hell are you doing?" Rin slowly hissed coldly.

Makoto took a step forward, towards the two, throwing his hands out to stop the two from harming one another. "Ah! Haru! Rin!"

Strong hands took hold of the gloved hands of the red head, before they could forcibly push aside the hands that was once on his face. Blue eyes stared deeply into the intense ruby eyes. Rin scowled, and opened his mouth. But the firm hold and light squeeze on his wrists stopped any harsh words the red head was going to spit out. There was a small glisten in those deep blue eyes, and for some reason, the irritation swirling in his chest was slowly dying down. That was when Rin caught himself holding his breath, and it was confusing him in not knowing why.

Makoto blinked and glanced between the two, staring intensely into each other's eyes. Neither made a move nor sound, easing the tension on the tallest male. He glanced over at the pale raven, and then a small smile formed. He closed his eyes and slowly exhaled. Emerald eyes opened and looked at the still red head. "Rin." The kind voice of the brunette princess voiced out. Ruby eyes tore away from deep oceanic blue ones, and dared to look into the soft and kind green ones. The red head felt like he was cornered, looking into those pairs of eyes staring intently at him. He shakily exhaled.

"Rin, we understand your frustration and impatience, but this mood won't get you anywhere, and closer to helping Rei. You need to calm down, so that you can focus and have a clear mind." Makoto spoke in a soothing tone that seemed to affect the red head, along with the warm closeness of the silent raven haired teen.

"I know." Rin tugged his wrists free from Haruka's hold, and he stepped back. "I know that." He sighed, and pulled out the closest chair. Then he dropped down, slumping back in the chair. He raked his finger through his hair, suddenly feeling his muscles relaxing and becoming tired all of a sudden. "Rei became my responsibility, since I helped break his curse. We made a promise together that we would go after the Dark Fairy, the same one that destroyed both our lives... I won't go back on my promise, and I need to save him." The red head replied.

Makoto's eyes fell to the floor. Suddenly there was a loud noise, porcelain clashing and then shattering. Both the brunette and red head looked up, and saw Haruka, whose hip was against the table. They stared at the frozen boy, who stared back with his dull eyes, even though they saw him fidgeting. They saw a clear space on the table next to him. Soon smiles formed upon the two taller boys, and they chuckled when they glanced at one another.

The brunette shook his head. "Haru, you need to be more careful. How will you explain that to Nagisa?" He placed his hands on his hips, looking like a mother scolding her own child.

Rin lightly waved a hand. "Apparently it doesn't matter, since Nagisa also just throws china to the ground, and that it's alright with the owners of this place." He replied.

Makoto sighed, and looked up at the nearly dilapidated house. "Are the owners in the house?" He wondered, questioning why they haven't seen anyone come out from the house yet, since they arrived.

The red head shook his head. "The last time we were here, no one was in. It seems like Nagisa is currently living here alone." He turned his head, and narrowed his eyes. "That reminds me, he still has a lot of explaining to do, like, why is he convicted as a criminal, and why the Queen wants his head." Makoto hummed, also wanting to know too. Haruka glanced over at the two taller males.

The door to the house burst open, and out came the blond they were talking about. Nagisa ran out with a giant velvet top hat, carried in his arms. He stopped beside where the red head was seated. "Sorry everyone for taking so long. I was grabbing all the things I can to help in our infiltration, and mission to bust Rei out of the castle."

Rin's eye twitched, staring at the big top hat, that looked askew, just like the house the blond just came from. There was a bright orange sash around the dark green hat, a big bright blue colored feather to the side, and a big card sticking out from the sash, with the numbers 10 / 6 written on it. "And... what are you going to do with that? Put it on top of the Queen's head?" He questioned, with a bit of sarcasm in his tone.

"Even better!" The blond's expression grew excited. He slammed the big hat on to the table, causing the table to rattle, and some of the tea sets sitting on the edge of the table to crash to the ground. Makoto cringed. "This baby is going to get us in, and fight against the soldiers of the castle. It's the best weapon ever!"

The brunette blinked his eyes, and became nervous, carefully eyeing the seemingly harmless top hat. "And... what is it you're planning to do... in this infiltration, with that hat, Nagisa?" He cautiously asked.

The huge beam of a smile shot warning signals to all three older males. "Why, it's going to be a secret! But I can only give you a sneak preview!" Nagisa dug his arms in the opening of the hat, rummaging around. Makoto nearly choked when the blond's arms easily went straight down past his elbow. The hat wasn't even that deep looking from the inside and out, nor did it look like there was anything in it. Then the blond struggled with something, as he was pulling it out the hat. He had to move the hat from the table, the object hanging off his arms, pointed to the ground. Then the hat slipped off, and Rin and Makoto's eyes nearly bugged out at the sight of the big and colorful explosive.

"Ta-da!" Nagisa dumped it on the table, causing more chinaware to fall off and crash to the floor. "It's going to be a big bang!" Ruby and emerald eyes twitched at the maniacal laughter coming from the blond.

Nagisa then picked up the big explosive with both hands, and easily dropped it back into the hat. Haruka was crouched down and poking at rim of the hat, while staring at the dark hole of the hat. The blond smiled proudly, with his arms to his hips. "It's a magical hat that belonged to a very dear friend of mine! You can put anything in it, and it can do all sorts of things, if you know how to use it. It's very convenient, but also a very rare magical item." He nodded to himself, then picked it up, carrying it in one arm.

Then he plunged his arm again in the hat, then pulled out some tasty bread rolls. He tossed them to the taller boys. Makoto nearly dropped his, and Haruka was closely inspecting the bread. Rin stared at it, hoping it wasn't going to be very sweet, like all the other food that Nagisa offered from the house. "For the road. We'll need it for energy. Let's go, we have no time to waste." Then the blond quickly walked out the gates, with the other three following closely behind.

* * *

The group of cross-dressers were walking through a thick forest, directional signs littering the place. Though they were going through a certain path led by the said resident of the lands, the useless signs were still bothering the red head. Ruby eyes glanced over at the back of the wavy blond head. "Are we trying to find your caterpillar friend?" He suddenly questioned.

Nagisa shook his head. "Nope, I'm trying to get the help of someone else." He replied.

As they walked deeper and further into the forest, the older boys didn't miss the wanted signs for 'Alice'. Rin slightly frowned, and intensely stared at the small back of the shortest boy. "You going to finally explain why the Queen wants your head?" He asked.

The pace suddenly slowed down, and the three older boys carefully watched the small blond. Nagisa continued his searching and walking through the forest, not turning to look at his companions. "Since... since the Red Queen took over, things haven't been going well for the lands. There's unfairness, inequality and unjustifiable punishment. The Queen gets rid of all she doesn't like, either by appearance, or accusations for not being loyal to her. Then, there's the case of high taxes, and the Queen being too greedy..."

The blond abruptly stopped in his trek, but didn't turn around to face the older males. Haruka tilted his head slightly, curious. Makoto got a little worried, and also felt sympathy towards the blond. Rin seemed like to be boring holes on to the blond's back with his heated gaze. "So... I took on the job to help out the ones who were helpless and scared. I suddenly became a leader of a rebel group that were against the Queen. We all fought back to bring back equality to the lands, raiding the treasure vaults, bringing food to the unfortunate, you know, the whole take from the rich and give to the poor."

"But, the Queen suddenly became more powerful, gaining powers she never had before... magic... really strong and somehow dark magic." Nagisa's head bowed down, and his hands curled tightly into fists. "We were all thrown off guard, and became powerless... then one by one, all my trusted friends and allies were taken out easily by that woman... they all protected me, even though the Queen wanted me most of all..." His voice dropped to a shaky whisper.

"Nagisa..." Makoto murmured, hesitating to reach out his hand towards the blond. There was a tint of sadness and unsure of how to comfort the younger boy.

Ruby eyes closed. "And you're willing to risk your life to head to the heart of the kingdom where your number one enemy is, just to save someone you literally ran into just days ago." The red head murmured.

The blond quickly turned around, with tiny beads of tears threatening to fall from the corner of his dark rosy eyes. He pushed through Makoto and Haruka, grabbing the red head's cloak, looking up at the tall male. "But Rei-chan isn't just someone I just met! He's my friend! You all are my friends! And I care enough for all of you to want to lay down my life against the one who has been hunting me for years. She's _my _enemy! I can't allow her to take more of my friends. I won't let anyone else protect me from her! If you and Rei-chan, and now Mako-chan, are willing to fight back to get back your own life from the one who destroyed it, then I can too! I'll stop her! I'll take back my father's home!" He shouted, with tears now streaming down his cheeks.

After a few tense seconds, the red head's expression relaxed, and he reached out a hand, affectionately rubbing the blond boy's head. There was a tiny smile on the corner of the red head's lips. "That's all I wanted to hear." He murmured softly. "It's okay now. Just let it all out, Nagisa." The blond blinked, and then opened his mouth to argue. But all that came out was a loud cry. It seemed that all the troubles and tension, all the years of fighting and loneliness were rushing out as he cried out. Rin smiled gently, and pulled the blonde's head to his chest, allowing him to cry more.

"H-how... how did you-" The blond sobbed between words. The red head started to pat the boy's head, listening to the blonde's cries echo in the forest. Ruby eyes slowly closed.

'_I knew there was more to you, than that happy-go-lucky front you always put out. You're good at hiding it, but I recognized it. You've taken too much responsibility on your shoulders, that you hide away your loneliness and fears._' Rin's mind whispered. '_You've became too overwhelmed with it, but you fought hard to ignore it, only thinking of protecting what it right, selflessly._' He glanced up at Makoto and Haruka, silently watching them. The brunette seemed to have teary eyes, while the raven's expression was the usual unchanging indifference. But Rin recognized a small spark in those deep blue eyes. "Hey now, you don't have to take all the responsibility... We're here, Nagisa, so rely on us. We can fight together." He spoke.

The blond pulled his head back, and looked up at the red head, sniffing loudly. "And you, Rin-chan?" He hiccuped, while rubbing his eyes with the back of his forearm. "You'll rely on us too, like how we all have as well?" Nagisa innocently whispered softly, only for the red head to hear. Rin blinked, thrown back a bit at the question. '_This boy..._'

"My, my, such touching scene." A voice suddenly echoed around them. Makoto flinched, and inched his way behind the silent raven haired boy's back. The boys started to look around, becoming tentative to their surroundings, and figuring out where the source of the voice was coming from.

Then a shape of a crescent appeared behind the brunette. Makoto turned around, and squeaked in surprise, jumping away and maneuvering Haruka to face whatever it was that was floating in the air. The raven had a deadpanned expression, as he was being used as a human shield. Rin narrowed his eyes, and slowly pushed the blond behind him. It looked like the floating object was a mouth, with jagged teeth, and it was smiling. It confirmed their suspicions when it started to move like a mouth, when words spoke from it. "So rare to see brave Alice in such a state."

Nagisa vigorously rubbed his eyes, and then moved past the red head. "Cheshire Cat!" He gasped.

Then a head of a brightly colored purple cat appeared, causing Makoto to squeak louder in surprise, and dive his head behind the shorter raven haired boy. The cat started laughed, and its head was floating around. "My, Alice, such interesting new friends you have here." The cat head said.

Rin raised a brow, watching the cat head. "A cat... that smiles..."

Then a fat body of the cat appeared, as it waved its bottom around, as if it was dancing in air. "What? Never saw one before?" It smiled widely, and came near the red head. "I must be very special!" Rin glared, and was about to snap at the cat, but Nagisa pulled him back, face thrusted close to the purple cat.

"Cheshire! I need your help! You're the only one left!" Nagisa exclaimed, his hands clasped together, in a begging pose. Haruka slowly eased Makoto out of hiding, while Rin kept glaring at the floating cat.

The plump stripped cat tilted its head, still grinning. "I don't know, Alice." He spoke in an amused, sing-song tone. "The Red Queen has been more and more dangerous lately, you know." The stripped tale was waving around behind the cat. Then it spun to its back, as if lying in the air, relaxing. "Especially since that friend of hers has been coming to the castle a lot frequently since last year, you know."

Rin's brow rose. Nagisa bit his lip, but still pressed forward. "I know that, but-"

"And, how many of your friends has been caught and executed because of your little rebellion, dear Alice?" The cat questioned, floating over around the blonde's head.

Magenta eyes glistened with tears, a pain reflected within. "... but-"

One of Rin's gloved hand came upon the small blond's shoulder. The red head pulled Nagisa back, and Rin narrowed his eyes at the cat, his nose inches away from the still grinning cat. "Tell me, Cat, this friend of the Red Queen that just started appearing since last year, who is it?" He had a demanding tone.

The Cheshire Cat seemed to grin wider, and floated back a few inches from the red head. "Oh, that pretty dark thing? Heard around that this friend claimed to be a Queen from a neighboring Kingdom." The striped cat replied. It spun in the air, and floated higher above the four boys' heads. "She has lots and lots of dark magic, you know. I might have heard around that this friend gave the Red Queen that dark magic." Rin gritted his teeth, and Makoto frowned.

The coy cat was suddenly pulled down, Rin roughly grabbing some of the animal's fur by its collar. "Tell us now, Cat, the way to the castle." He hissed.

In a blink of an eye, the cat was gone from the red head's grasp, sitting on a high branch of a tree. "Do tell me, what I get in return." Rin was seething with annoyance, and Makoto had to pull the red head back.

Nagisa raised the magical top hat in his possession, showing it to the plump cat. "This!" The blonde nearly shouted. "I'll give this to you. I know you would want this."

The Cheshire Cat's eyes widened, and its grin widened, with its tail swaying in delight. The blond boy then pulled it back, hugging it close to his chest. "However, you'll get it, after we stop the Red Queen. I promise you, and you know I never go back on my promises." Magenta eyes stared intensely into the wide eyes of the talking magical creature. Silence blanketed over them. The three older males were looking between their shortest companion and the cat in the tree.

A defeated and long sigh escaped from the mouth of the cat. "Very well, Alice." It sat up on its two hind legs. "Since I know you very well, and you're my favorite Royal of Wonderland." The cat disappeared from the trees, and suddenly appeared, perched on the shoulder of the blond boy. "Onward we go, so the sooner I can finally have that delightful hat." It raised its paw, and pointed towards a direction.

Before their eyes, the three older boys saw the trees parted, and a new pathway appeared. Nagisa didn't question it, and followed the pathway, with the three older males following closely. Makoto slightly clung behind his silent raven haired friend, with Rin covering the rear of their group. The red head frowned, silently watching the blond boy in the pink dress. '_Royal... huh?_'

* * *

The scenery changed, as they escaped from the thick forest, entering into an almost barren desert, with ranges of red and gold tall hills. From a distance, the four boys could see the top of colorful building structures peaking over the hill tops. Nagisa grinned widely, and pointed at the direction of the castle, the center of the Wonderlands. "There it is guys." He raised his hand over his eyes, and craned his neck, looking up at the sky. "Judging by the sun's position, we'll definitely make it before the afternoon tea! Then we'll save Rei-chan!" He exclaimed, his usual cheer returned, much to the three older boys' relief.

"Oh, but Alice, out in the open, the sky has eyes." The Cheshire Cat mused, looking up at the sky. The four boys looked up and spotted a small dark figure circling the skies of the open desert terrain.

Makoto's expression fell, with slight fear. He recalled the horrible moment with that flying animal in the sky, that took the bespectacled princess away. "What will we do now?" He murmured.

Nagisa turned around, beaming widely. "I've spent years sneaking into the kingdom undetected. There's no problem at all, just trust me!" He nudged the tall brunette. Then he turned to the cat, perched on his shoulder. "This is where we have to part, Cheshire."

"I know the drill." The cat floated away from the blond, hovering over the four boys. "I await when the Red Queen is forced to step down, my dear Alice."

The blond nodded. "And as I promised, you will get this hat when it's all over." He spoke softly. The cat grinned, and then disappeared, with an after image of its sharp teeth. After a few silent moments, Nagisa took a deep breath, and turned to face the three older boys. "Alright, here's the plan." His expression molded into seriousness. The three older males looked at their companion with attentiveness.

"The stretch of land between the forest and the kingdom are known to have secret tunnels that the animals of the Wonderlands love to use... especially my dear friends. We've gone through them many times, and none of the Red Queen's soldiers were able to find them, luckily." Nagisa turned around, and placed a hand over his eyes, as he looked up at the sky with the fly figure circling high above. "We can dodge the Jubjub bird easily."

"We can call this stretch of land the safe zone, where it has not been enchanted like these crazy forests." He looked over his shoulder and grinned. "No one will get forced back to the entrance of the Wonderlands, nor will you go insane. However, the tunnels are like mazes for those who do no know their way through." Nagisa reach into the hat and produced white marble chess pieces, with strings tied around it, to make it like necklaces. "Take these."

The three older boys took one, and looked at them. Haruka took the rook. Makoto saw that he got the bishop, while Rin found the knight in his hand. The red head looked up at Nagisa. "Chess pieces?" He carefully asked.

The blond smiled and nodded. He pulled out what looked like the white queen piece, and then hung the string around his neck, with the chess piece hanging against his chest. "They're enchanted, an item a good friend left." His eyes glazed in nostalgia. Nagisa looked up at the three taller males. "They will lead you through the tunnels, if ever we do get separated. You just need to point the base of the piece to the ceiling, and you'll know you're going the right way." Nagisa stood up straight, closing his eyes. "There is a song that the animals here sing: 'Follow White, to the center of the Heart, at the Royals' seat. Avoid the Red, or you'll meet your defeat. Look up above, move the pieces to reach the end.'." He recited with a nod, and looked up at the older males.

Rin narrowed his eyes, furrowing his brows. "That's it?"

The blond tilted his head a bit to the side, blinking his eyes. "What do you mean?"

"Where is the word that rhymes with 'end'? There has to be another verse." He stared hard at the shortest male. "Are you hiding something from us again?"

Makoto stepped up between the two, with his hands raised. "No need to argue." He defended. Nagisa ducked behind the brunette, innocently blinking towards the red head. Rin felt a bit irritated, and gritted his teeth. "We just follow the path to the center of the Heart Kingdom, right?" He looked over his shoulder to the small blond behind him. "Using these chess pieces?" He raised the white bishop he had.

Nagisa nodded. "Yup! And take these too!" The shortest male reached his hand into the hat, and then pulled out a few cookies and little vials unknown liquid inside it. There was small tags on the vials that said 'Drink Me', while on the cookies were written with frosting 'Eat Me'. He handed a each person a cookie and a vial. "They are things to use when things get a bit sticky." He told them.

"Sticky?" Makoto gulped, becoming a bit nervous, as he took two cookies and two vials. "What do you mean?"

"Well, we might end up separated somehow, and these are tools to help you out." He lifted the vial. "Drink this, and you'll shrink to the size of a mouse!" He emphasized the size, using his fingers. Haruka, who opened the vial and was sniffing it, slowly pulled it away from his face and closed the vial. "Then this cookie will make you as big as the Heart Kingdom castle!" He exclaimed, throwing his arms out as emphasize. "So do be careful on how much you eat and drink those. I never got the right proportions to be ideal sizes. But it will wear off by midnight, for some reason." The three males nodded, and put away the things in their hidden pockets.

Nagisa came up to a small cliff side, with an old tree stump right next to it. The blond knocked on the rotting looking wood, then a hole opened at the base of the big tree stump. Makoto and Haruka watched with awe. "So here is the real part of the plan. We run through the tunnels, and get to the center of the kingdom. We'll be at the castle throne room. Don't stop, okay? Just keep going." He carefully eyed them, seeing that they all understood. "Once we reach the castle, we'll split into two groups, the distraction and the one that will free Rei-chan. Use the chess pieces there too. It will lead you to important places in the castle, and it will eventually lead you to the dungeons."

Rin raised his hand. "I'll be part of the distraction team." He looked at Makoto and Haruka. "I think you two are better suited as the ones to rescue Rei from the dungeons." Nagisa beamed, having no complaints of not being on the distraction team.

Makoto blinked, and then widened his eyes. "Huh? But..."

The red head stared hard into the brunette's eyes, and then glanced over at the silent raven haired boy. "Let's admit that I am more skillful in fighting off those soldiers. Nagisa knows the castle, I will assume, on the back of his hand, and he has that top hat, whatever it does." Rin raked his fingers through his hair, pushing back his hood. "I'm not saying you guys are useless, but I think you are the ones that can get Rei out." Then his eyes darkened, and he pounded his fist into his other hand. "Plus, I know we'll run into that guy, and I need to repay him for what he has done." He muttered darkly.

The blond clapped his hands. "Then it's settled!" Nagisa hefted the top hat into his arms, securing it. "Like I said, we might get separated in the tunnels, but don't worry. Just don't stop and keep going. Use the pieces to guide you. We will all eventually make it to the throne room, and we will wait there for each other, before we commence the second part."

Rin pulled his hood back up. "Got it. I'll go first." The red head dropped into the dark hole without question or resistance.

Makoto bit his lower lip, carefully heading to the opening. But then Haruka stepped up, and dropped down. "Haru!"

Nagisa reach up his hand, and placed it on the brunette's shoulder. Makoto looked back. "Still regretting coming with us to this dangerous mission?" He carefully asked.

The brunette shook his head. "No." His expression changed into determination. "I'm... just worried that someone will get hurt... that's all."

The blond smiled reassuringly. "As long as we all come out of this together, that's all that matters, Mako-chan. Just have faith in everyone, okay?" Then he grinned widely and pushed the brunette into the hole. There was a small shriek from the big boy, before disappearing into the darkness. Nagisa patted his skirt, and raised his left foot into the hole.

"Good luck, Alice." A voice sounded from behind. Nagisa looked over his shoulder, and smiled, before falling into the hole after his friends. With a wave of its tail, the stripped cat disappeared from sight.

**End Chapter V**

* * *

**AN**: I was going to make this chapter and the next be just one very long chapter, but it would end up more than 10,000+ words for just one chapter. So I separated this part, focusing in the world of Nagisa's story. There is more to Nagisa than meets the eye, and you'll have to read the conclusion next chapter.

Ah, but what about Rei...?


End file.
